Swords and Shields
by SparkyDapperDab19
Summary: Failures are what define us and show what type of people we really are. Jaune Arc is still coming to terms with that revelation after the Breach. When he chooses to try and improve himself on his own when no one else can, he comes across someone who will temper the reckless flames within him and let him learn the value of being someone else's shield.
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own RWBY or Overwatch. They belong to their respective owners. AN at the end of the story. ENJOY!**

Swords and Shields

Chapter one: Kinks in the Armor.

_"__We're losing him!" _

_"__Please not him. Please."_

_"__What were you thinking?" _

_"__I…I…" _

_"__Your fault." _

_"__Your fault!" _

_"__YOUR FAULT!" _

A gasp escaped the blonde knight as he shot up from his slumber. Sweat brimmed around the neck of his hoodie and in between his plates of armor. His chest heaved violently and he resisted the need to place a hand over it.

Jaune Arc closed his eyes in order to reel his fear back in and after a few breaths, he reopened them with a much calmer demeanor.

"And that makes three." Jaune said as he bent his knees up and placed his forearms atop his kneecaps. The grass beneath him brushed against his jeans along with the wind that rustled his hair and chilled the sweat along his skin.

The chill forced his memory to a week ago and on instinct alone, his mind clamped the memories shut, seizing his body in the process.

"Dammit." Jaune muttered as the memory only fueled the anger that rested in his stomach. He got up from his grassy spot along the Beacon cliffs, still refusing to relive what happened. He loathed the loneliness, but he was thankful his team was gone for the time being, they would never let him do this, despite that hypothetical opinion contradicting what was said a week prior.

A huff escaped him as he eyed the weapon that rested by his side, leaving an impression in the grass. There was a determined hatred in his eyes as he gripped the sheathed sword and placed it on his hip. The weight almost made him tilt to his left, but he remained true to his posture while he eyed the spot he was looking for.

A shallow smirk rose on his lips while he brushed his hand across the dirtied launchpad he buried months prior. He had no specific motive to hide it, but it would be something Goodwitch would chastise him for. He didn't care as he found a much-needed use for the device he cleaned off.

Jaune placed the pad toward the Emerald Forest and reached into his pack that rested at his feet, pulling out a makeshift map of his area of interest.

"There's the temple… I think." Jaune commented towards his amateur craftmanship. He was good with distance, but he was sure cartography wasn't a talent of his.

"It will do for now." Jaune said with some reluctance as he stepped on the pad. He didn't care for any engineering difficulties as he recalled the launchpad handbook mentioning as long as the interior wasn't tampered with, the alloy on the outside could be thrashed by a goliath and still be functional.

Jaune could hear the gears turn and a sense of nostalgia overcame him in regard to almost a year ago at initiation. He turned his head back to the academy and couldn't help but let the sad smile he had before return.

"Sorry guys." Jaune said as he tightened his pack around his shoulders and heard the final gear click. "But I'm doing this for all of you." his chest seized and breath halted right at the exact moment the springs released, sending the blonde knight soaring through the air.

The force that pressed all around him was nearly suffocating as the wind tugged him from every direction, twisting and turning his body with even the smallest of breezes. In due time, he was able to force his positioning head first. The forest blurred beneath him and with a gasp, Jaune activated his aura right before he entered the underbrush.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Jaune screamed as he rocketed through a few trees, splintering them in half right before he impacted the moist dirt.

"Uggh" the blonde knight groaned with exasperation. He gripped his right shoulder and coughed a bit before he stood up on his feet and reached for his pack.

"Please, please, please, don't be broken." Jaune begged as he unzipped his back pack and peaked inside. He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding the moment he saw all the content he packed were accounted for.

"Water, map, compass, sleeping bag…" Jaune mumbled as he removed the wrapping for the shock absorption.

"Can't believe that hunch in Port's class helped." Jaune couldn't help but laugh. He hoisted his pack over his shoulder with a bit of a smile. "Alright, I'm not too far off from the temple, but I better get moving." With a quick huff, he trotted down and over the uneven greenery.

Jaune found no need to speak as he took the nature in. The branches above him decorated the greenery in a spotted pattern while the smell was rich with damp plants and soil. Despite his motivation, he couldn't help but revel in the sensations of the outdoors with a smile on his face.

**"****GRRRRR."**

Jaune's footsteps came to a halt as he felt his shoulders tense at the sudden noise that cut through the flora. With a few breaths, he mustered the strength he needed to turn around. The familiar red eyes of three Beowolves peered into him with famished intrigue.

The blonde knight swallowed with remaining saliva resided in his mouth and slowly reached for his sword. The large Beowolf in the center of the group tilted its head at the slow movement. The other two continued to snarl at their imminent meal.

"This is why you're here." Jaune whispered to himself and with a shaky hand, he brandished his sword, pointing it at the Grimm in the center. His shield expanded in his other hand and he prepared his footing to how Pyrrha instructed him time and time again.

The center Beowolf let out a howl and without a moment to lose, pounced on Jaune with claws sharpened and teeth that glistened in the afternoon sun, all for the intent of ripping him to pieces.

Jaune yelped with wide eyes as he rolled to the side with a rugged grace only he would praise. He put his shield up once more and noticed the other two Grimm were hanging back, looking on at the confrontation.

_'__Port did mention something about that when Beowolves hunt in packs.'_ Jaune though, but was cut short as he felt the claws of his opponent scratch across his shield.

"AGH!" Jaune let out a startled yell as while stumbling back with his shield at his side. His right leg buckled at the sudden strength of the Beowolf and he fell to one knee. The beast ran its tongue across its teeth and with a growl, charged at the winded blonde.

Jaune's breathing was teetering between heavy and frantic as he saw the Beowolf charge. It was right on top of him with its paws outstretched and claws elongated.

"Dammit!" Jaune roared as he released his shield and grasped his sword with two hands. With what aura he could muster, Jaune put all his strength into his right foot and sprung forward into the Beowolf's space. He thrusted his blade forward into the beast's chest with everything he could.

A loud cry came from the Beowolf as Jaune looked up to see the Grimm dissipate into ashes. His gaze instantly locked onto the rest of the pack that decided to turn tail and ran back into the forest.

Jaune fell back onto the soil beneath him and let out a quick laugh.

"That's one down." Jaune muttered with a happy sigh. He looked down at his sword and couldn't help but let the euphoria of victory flow through him. That feeling left quickly before it was replaced with a sinking feeling in his gut that he felt for the past week, ever since the Breach. The cause of the dreadful feeling being the sight of his shield.

"I got careless." Jaune said as he stood up with weapons in hands. His mind began to race back to the beginning of the confrontation and his fists unconsciously tightened.

_'__Weiss could have dodged that without an issue.' _Jaune thought. _'Ruby would have been faster, Nora would have been stronger, Ren would've…'_ a growl escaped his lips as he collapsed his shield and sheathed his sword with abrupt anger.

"Can't think." Jaune ordered himself while hoisting his pack up. "Can't think." he repeated with a hushed tone as he continued forward.

#

The camp fire flickered with grace Jaune envied and the embers danced up into the night sky as if they yearned to be among the stars. He sat atop his sleeping bag with his shoes planted in the dirt. With one last chomp, he finished off the rest of the squirrel he managed to catch a few hours into his trip.

Jaune tossed the burnt stick to the side where the grass ended and the stone of the ancient temple began. It was his base of operation so to speak and despite being a hard surface, it beat the much bumpier terrain of the grass.

"Okay." Jaune said out loud and brushed his hands of any burnt crumbs from his meal. "Time for some rest." Jaune new the risks of being out in the forest without his team, but he knew man made objects sticking out in the wilderness were mostly safe in comparison to sleeping the woods.

After dowsing the fire with water, he got from a nearby river, he made sure he wasn't out in the open too much and finally set his sleeping bag by the podium where he retrieved the white rook piece during initiation. Jaune rested his head on the cool ground and looked on at the center of the temple, His eyes softened at the memory he recalled but from the perspective of being upside down in a tree. He saw them all, Pyrrha, Nora, Ren, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang. All of them were there to get their pieces with competency, confidence, and the qualifications to do so.

Jaune looked at their transparent figures with their backs to him and the memories came flooding back. First the heat, then the blood, and finally the sterile scent of chemicals. It all came back tenfold and Jaune squeezed his eyes shut. He tried, all he could do was try and shut out the voices, but they came screaming back. Jaune seethed through his teeth and tried to focus on anything else, but he couldn't escape the throbbing pain in his head.

**"****HHSSSSSSS."**

Just like with the Beowolf, Jaune's eyes shot open and he sprung out of his sleeping back, only to feel a blunt force crash through the podium he leaned against.

"Shit!" Jaune screamed as he along with his gear, went flying off the main steps of the temple. His pack sent one way, and himself another. He thanked his instincts to hold onto his weapon before he crashed into the dirt.

**"****HSSS." **

The noise returned as Jaune mustered himself to his feet and faced the source. Here was no time to tremble as the full weight of a King Taijitu slammed into him head first.

"AAAGH!" Jaune hollered once again as he went soaring for the second time in thirty seconds, but this time, he had the pleasure of experiencing what it was like to be thrown through a tree again. Jaune shielded his eyes from the splinters as best he could before he hit the dirt with his shoulder. His brain bounced the walls of his skull as if it was a ping pong ball while his aura flickered quickly. His shield arm felt so heavy and with a glare, he relinquished the shield and grasped his sword with two hands once again. Jaune wildly slashed back at the snake who was circling around him. His sword fruitlessly sliced at the wind while he rubbed the remaining dirt off his face.

Jaune blinked a few times as he got up from his prone position to charge the snake. He was successful in his minimal efforts as a war cry erupted from his mouth and his blade made contact with the thick mass of the King Taijitu's body. A sharp hiss was aimed toward him and before he could get another hit in, Jaune felt a squeezing sensation below his waist. In the darkness, his eyes widened as he realized the Grimm's mass was squeezing around him.

"Crap, crap, crap!" Jaune panicked as he scrambled up on top of the overlapping layers of the snake's body. His chest was heaving and frantic cries flew from his mouth throughout his efforts to claw his way to the top of the snake's circle.

"AAAAGGGGGHH!" Jaune's scream ripped through the darkness as the Grimm closed any gaps between it and the blonde, entrapping his body from the chest down along with his right arm. His left arm remained free and atop the snake's body, but it was a minor victory as he stared at the two heads of the King Taijitu. One head was black, the other was white, and both had red eyes that looked on at him with a hunger he could never understand. A hiss of satisfaction rolled off their tongues in unison.

"FUCK!" Jaune yelled as he pounded his free fist on the Grimm's body that began to tighten. He gritted his teeth and refused to give the two heads the pleasure of another scream, even if he felt something in his entrapped arm snap.

"NGGH!" Jaune clenched his jaw as he clawed with what remaining strength he had. He wasn't able to breathe anymore due to the crushing around his chest. His eyes grew so heavy, that each blink was gradually becoming slower and slower as he felt more bones bend in ways they shouldn't.

"My…Fault." Jaune muttered as his head nodded off to his left shoulder, blinking more slowly with each second.

He was almost unconscious when he heard a screech come from one of the snake heads, before he could question it, he felt the sudden release of the Grimm and plummeted to the dirt beneath him. His breathing came back in shallow motions due to the lack of pressure around him.

"HAH!" Jaune opened his eyes at the sharp war cry and tilted his head up from the dirt. The Grimm's attention was elsewhere and Jaune suddenly saw an object slam against the whited head.

Jaune blinked.

A hiss of fury was aimed in the direction of the object, but the hiss was cut short as Jaune saw a figure slam their weapon along the side of the black snake head.

Jaune blinked again.

The King Taijitu's remaining head recovered from the sudden blow and attacked the figure with a gaping maw. Jaune's eyes flickered with doubt, until a blue, clear, square appeared out thin air and halt the Grimm in its tracks.

"HA!" Jaune heard a muffled cry along with what sounded like a quick thrust a Bullhead turbine would make. Before he could raise his head higher, he saw that the Grimm as a whole was tossed aside and smashed through a few trees. The figure charged on into the demolished tree line. The shattered moonlight gave Jaune just the right amount of visibility to witness the figure with luscious hair running off the back of their head. It waved with the light and he could have sworn it contained a crimson hue.

"Dammit…Pyrrha." Jaune said between breaths until his head became too heavy. His eyes fluttered for a bit as he rested his head on the cool, damp, dirt. Right before he closed his eyes, he could see the same figure come running towards his direction.

#

_"__I couldn't tell if he was just lucky or Oum was on his side." _

_"__Why…. Just why…."_

_"__YOUR FAULT!"_

"NGGAAAAHH!" Jaune yelled as he shot up from his slumber once more. The sweat around his neck returned and crept up onto his forehead.

"Nggh." He winced at the pain that rocketed up his right arm. He reached for it with his other arm, only to realize his armor was gone, along with his hoodie and shirt. They were replaced with bandages around his torso and a splint along his right forearm. The pain was more than prevelant, but he would be lying if he thought that the first aid didn't help.

Jaune looked around his surroundings and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the sudden change in scenery. The grass and soil were replaced with gravel and dust. He looked overhead to see the mismatched formations of stalagmites reaching down to him.

"A cave?" he asked as a fire brimmed brightly a few feet from him. There was another sleeping bag laid out on the other side of the fire, along with a pack next to his. It was bulkier than his and his eyes widened when he saw his armor and weapons next to it. Especially his shield.

"Oh!" A voice reverberated off the cave walls and rang in Jaune's ears. He quickly darted his head to the source of the voice while he scrambled back a bit with his good arm.

He paused though, when he looked up at the woman in front of him who continued to stare back with worry. She wore a mismatched outfit which entailed a black tank top and red overalls. Any other details to her figure were covered with armor plating around her chest and left arm. Her face was covered in soot and she had a band aid under her left eye. Jaune's interest peaked when he saw her hair that seeped out of the red cloth atop her head. Her hair was a rich brown and yet, the way the fire illuminated her entire being made her resemble Jaune's red headed partner.

"You were having some trouble sleeping, so I went to get some more water. Did you just wake up?" her voice was much different from Pyrrha's and he couldn't tell where her accent was from.

He tried to speak up, but didn't realize how dry his mouth was. The woman who was around his age, maybe older, noticed his predicament and handed him a canteen. He gratefully gulped down heaps of water and let a relaxed sigh.

"Sorry about that." he said in between breaths. "Thank you."

"Oh, it was no bother." the woman said with tenderness. "You sure did take a beating though." she pointed down at his bandages.

"Yeah…" Jaune said with a bit of a frown. "Did you patch me up?"

"Sure did." the woman said as she sat across from him. "Though your aura has been doing wonders. You should all better in a few days."

"Thank you." Jaune replied as he looked up to her. "I'm Jaune, Jaune Arc." the woman looked back at him with soft eyes and a calm smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Jaune. I'm Brigitte Lindholm."

"That's quite the last name." Jaune said. I take it you aren't from Vale?"

"Nope." Brigitte replied as she shook her head. "I'm from a small mining town along the coast of Mantle. She prodded the fire with a stick. "How about yourself?"

"Born and raised in Vale. Small town close to the kingdom though." Jaune used his good hand to scratch the back of his head and soon shivered at the sudden breeze that blew through the cave.

"Oh! Sorry." Brigitte shot up from her spot and reached for Jaune's hoodie she had neatly folded next to his armor. "After patching you up, I forgot the fact you could get cold even with the fire." she finished her reasoning with a nervous chuckle.

"Thanks." Jaune said as Brigitte offered him his hoodie. It took him a bit, but he managed to get his injured arm through the sleeve. Though he couldn't help but hear Brigitte giggle at his predicament.

"All better." Jaune patted the Pumpkin Pete mascot on his hoodie and smiled.

"Are you a fan?" Brigitte asked.

"You know it." Jaune said with a small smile until it morphed into a slight frown. He furrowed brows as his gaze turned to his armor. "Quick question."

"Hm?" Brigitte said as her attention broke free from the flames.

"What are you doing out in the Emerald Forest? Training as well?" Jaune asked as he once more, brushed his splint. Brigitte rose her eyebrows and ran her hand over the red cloth atop her head.

"Well I told Papa that I was coming out here to look for raw materials…" Brigitte said as she looked away from Jaune as if she was caught trying to steal a dessert. "Whether I fought Grimm or not along the way doesn't have to be shared." she gave him a knowing glance and Jaune put his hands up in defense.

"Lips are sealed." Jaune said while moving his fore finger and thumb across his mouth in a zipping motion. "Arc's promise." she laughed a bit at his reinforced promise and folded her arms.

"I answered your question, care to answer one of mine?" Brigitte asked and Jaune gestured for her to go ahead. "What were you doing out here? You mentioned something about training?" Jaune nodded and refused to wince.

"Yeah." He said as he scratched his cheek. "I was planning on a weekend trip out here for some extra training. Not doing too well in classes at the moment." Jaune finished while cupping the back of his neck.

"Are you a huntsman?" Jaune noticed that Brigitte's demeanor grew much more up beat than it already was as she asked her question.

"In training." Jaune clarified. "I go to Beacon."

"I knew it!" Brigitte exclaimed with a wide grin. Jaune was a little put off by the sudden glee, but decided to remain still. "I knew you had to be. Your weapon said it all." Jaune raised an eyebrow.

"How so?"

"Well it is a basic broadsword and shield, but the collapsing feature on the shield definitely has the flare huntsmen and huntresses are known for." Brigitte explained as she examined his weapon from afar. "It's definitely more practical and reliable than most of the weapons I've seen around the academy." Jaune could see the distaste across her face as she declared her statement. There was a short pause before he chuckled.

"Are you a student as well?" Jaune asked with a little caution. "Do you work there?" Brigitte shook her head.

"Sadly no." she replied. "I mostly help Papa at his shop in Vale. I do train a lot though." Jaune smirked at her justification and slightly shook his head.

"Well I could learn a thing or two from you. You handled that King Taijitu like it was nothing."

"Well hard work pays off I guess." both of them chuckled at her response as the fire grew dimmer. Once the laughter settled down, Jaune let out a yawn and stretched his arms, only to wince at the pain in his forearm.

"You should probably get some rest." Brigitte said. "I'm heading back to Vale tomorrow, so I can help you get back to Beacon if you'd like." her earnest suggestion baffled Jaune for a few moments before he shook his head.

"You've already done enough." he replied. "I'll be able to get home on my own." as on cue, the pain in his arm flared the moment he put a bit of pressure on it.

"You may have a strong aura, but that will take some time to heal." another pause hung over them as Brigitte pointed out the obvious. "I certainly don't mind helping you out."

"This seems a bit too good to be true, y'know?" Jaune asked out of genuine confusion. "I don't mean to complain, but saving me, patching me up, and helping me get home, you're going a lot out of your way to help me out." Brigitte let out a huff, but smiled anyway at Jaune's objection.

"Well, I want to." Brigitte said as she stretched her arms. "Papa taught me to help anyone whenever I can. Given that we are basically heading the same direction, it only seems rational that we head back together, you won't be caught off guard like earlier."

"Yeah…" Jaune reverted back to the silence for a brief moment before taking in a breath. "Alright. We'll head out tomorrow. Thanks."

"Well what are friends for?" she asked, though an awkward look contorted around the edges of her mouth. "I mean, what are newly met strangers for?" she asked with a nervous chuckle and Jaune couldn't help but smile back.

"Well, Mom always said strangers are just friends you haven't met yet."

"I don't think that's entirely true."

"Is it true now?" Brigitte's eyes widened just a millimeter before she smiled.

"Oh, you're good." she said. "And yeah, I'd say it's true."

"Great." Jaune said with a toothy grin.

"Now go get some rest," she playfully ordered. "I'll wake you up in a few hours." Jaune wanted to object, but saw her looking down at his injured form.

"Point taken." he muttered before he made his way to his sleeping bag. Once he got comfortable with his arm and his bruised chest, he realized how exhausted he was. "Good night…Brijitte?" she rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Brigitte." she corrected. "It's a 'G' not a 'J'."

"Alright." Jaune said as he turned over. "Good night, Brigitte."

"Good night, Jaune." she replied and Jaune finally closed his eyes on his own volition. He would be a lying idiot if he said that today wasn't a bust, but he couldn't help but smile at thought of his new companion. Maybe he was a bit too trusting, but if that was the case, she could have just left him and took his things. Maybe he was going to wake up with his bag gone and her out of sight. His need for being apprehensive was overwhelmed by the need for sleep and he decided like always, he would face the consequences if they ever came his way.

**So yeah. I was able to finally get this out. This has been bouncing in my head about a few months after Brigitte's character was released and I'm so happy I can get this out there to you guys. Big thanks to Jauneforever for helping me out and brainstorming with me. I don't know how this ship will go, but hey, nothing ventured nothing gained. Like, review, comment, and if there are any questions, shoot me a PM. Alright everyone, like always, BE FIRECE!**

**SPARKYDAPPERDAB19 SIGNING OFF! **


	2. Chapter 2

**So, after a crapload of excuses and two craploads of procrastination with a dash of writer's block, I finally did it. Finally getting my shit together in small increments. Starting with another chapter of this. I hope you all enjoy. Shout outs to Jauneforever and noble4259 for helping me out with this. I don't own RWBY or Overwatch. They belong to their respective owners. ENJOY**

Chapter Two: Assessing the Wounds

The brisk cold clashed horribly with the bright and sunny scenery of the Emerald Forest as Jaune and Brigitte made their way back to Beacon with a pinch of difficulty. Jaune wasn't in the best condition for a battle despite his aura, so Brigitte took point while he trailed behind her. The blonde knight knew it wasn't ideal nor did he find any satisfaction with the fact that his impromptu training session was cut way too short for his liking, but he wouldn't lie and say he didn't appreciate the help this stranger was giving him.

Jaune continued to internally grovel about until Brigitte held up her hand for him to stop. He complied without complaint, but couldn't help but admire the caution written all over her. He couldn't see where she was looking, but her low posture, along with her loose shoulders and tight grip on her weapon made her look as if she was a professional huntress.

Jaune quickly brought himself back to his senses as his acquaintance gestured for him to move up to her position. With a quick breath, he brandished Crocea Mors much to his right arms displeasure, yet kept shield collapsed as he approached Brigitte. Jaune quickly saw the reason for her caution as the two gazed upon an enormous plain of grass without any trees to speak of for a good couple kilometers.

"You see anything?" Jaune whispered.

"Nothing so far," Brigitte said with the same volume. "The sky's clear too, but we should keep our guard up. There won't be a lot of cover for us when we're out there."

"Right," Jaune said with a nod before he looked at Brigitte. He shrunk a bit at her confused gaze. "Is something wrong?"

"You're not going to use your shield?"

"Oh!" Jaune said before he reached for his shield. He couldn't help but wince at the aching he felt along his right arm and chest.

"Are you going to be alright?" Brigitte asked with a concern Jaune heard too many times before.

"Yeah," Jaune said as he grasped his collapsed shield. "My left arm wasn't the one that was hurt, so I'll be fine." the blonde knight activated his shield, only for nothing to happen.

"What?" Jaune asked before he looked down with a bit of disbelief. He pressed the switch that expanded his shield once more, only to be greeted with an empty clicking sound. "Oh, for the love of…Crap!" Jaune exclaimed as he holstered the busted shield.

"Let me see," Brigitte requested with her dirty hand extended toward him. "Please?" Jaune looked at her and couldn't help but sigh at the patient smile she had given him.

"Okay," Jaune said as he handed her his sheath. She graciously accepted the challenge as she let out a small laugh before giving his shield a look.

"I can't seem to thank you enough." Jaune said as he turned his back to the mechanic. He put his free hand on his hip and looked at the dirt beneath him with embarrassment.

"Please," Brigitte started. "Think nothing of it." her words were short and sharp as noises Jaune could only describe as metal being pulled and broken off rang through the air. Creaking soon followed as a few grunts reverberated from Brigitte before she let out a breath and activated his shield.

"Wait," Jaune asked with a bit of disbelief. "You fixed it?" he turned around and faced Brigitte who had a puzzled look on her face.

"For the moment," Brigitte said as she handed Jaune's shield back to him. "I would recommend keeping it expanded until we make it back to the kingdom."

"What was wrong with it?" Jaune genuinely asked before he gazed at his family symbol with a bit of distain.

"A lot." Brigitte said with an amused huff. "But only if you try to shift it back into its sheath. It will hold as a shield."

"Great." Jaune grumbled as he fastened his shield with his left hand while he kept a loose grip on his sword with his right.

"We should get moving," Brigitte said as she rubbed the back of her head in order to avoid the awkwardness that their conversation led them too. "Should be a few more hours until we make it back to the cliff side of Beacon."

"Sounds good." Jaune said as he tried to reel back his negativity. Brigitte was going out of her way to help him, the last thing he wanted to do was be ungrateful. His mind raced back to the night before which was absent of any unwanted nightmares or altered memories from a few weeks prior, which was a positive, but didn't serve a purpose at the moment. He looked up from his feet as the two began to walk across the field and at Brigitte's back.

"You said you were from Mantle?" Jaune asked in a polite manner.

"Hm?" Brigitte asked. "Sorry, got a little too focused on our surroundings."

"Sorry," Jaune said as he kept his grip on his shield tightened. "It can wait."

"No!" Brigitte said with a flustered strain in her voice. Jaune was taken a bit aback with the sudden response but soon calmed down. "I mean…" she trailed off before her shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry."

"Is everything okay?" Jaune asked as he was concerned for his new friend.

"I'm really sorry." Brigitte started as she hoisted her pack to make sure it was secure. "It's just been a while since I've talked to… well anyone who wasn't a customer, or my family."

"Oh," Jaune said while he blinked with realization that his skepticism wasn't one sided. "Well, that's another one." Jaune said with a short chuckle.

"Another what?" Brigitte asked as she looked back at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Another socially awkward engineer I know." Jaune said. "Or would it be weapon specialist?" he rubbed his chin as he pondered to the rhythm of his footsteps that squished beneath the soft soil. "Weapon maintenance? You know what? Weapon nut. That's what we're going with. She's a weapon nut."

Brigitte laughed at Jaune's remark as he declared his friend's title with such resolve. "A little enthusiasm towards a passion doesn't hurt. I'm sure you two didn't have awkward lulls in your conversations."

"Have you ever had someone pull out a giant scythe out of nowhere just to keep the conversation going?" Jaune asked with a deadpan stare as he remembered his first interaction with Ruby. "Oh, and we can't forget the sniper rifle that it turns into."

Brigitte turned towards him with surprise written all over her face. "It's also a gun?!"

"It's also a gun." Jaune said with a blank stare, to which Brigitte let out a hearty laugh.

"That must have been a first impression." she said as she tried to stifle her laughter.

"Oh, it was." Jaune replied as they continued along the empty plain.

"I will say that your friend and I differ a bit." Brigitte said with a quick glance back at Jaune.

"How so?"

"I'm not fond of weapons," Brigitte said as she focused her gaze forward. "I understand their necessity, but I would rather design and create armor or shields. I prefer to focus more on the defensive aspects of combat."

"Huh," Jaune said as he looked upward in order to reflect on his past interactions with Ruby. "Now that you mention it, she has only focused on weapons. How about that." Jaune surmised with a nod. Maybe once things get better, he could ask Ruby what she thought on defense centric weapons.

"But back to your question before we got sidetracked." Brigitte said with a smile.

Jaune chuckled in response before he waved his hand. "I was just recalling what you said last night. You're from Mantle?"

"Yup," Brigitte said. "Well, not entirely true. There's a small town along the coast. That's where I grew up. Papa did business with Mantle and some side projects for Atlas."

"What brings you all the way to Vale then?" Jaune asked with genuine curiosity. "Unless that's too personal."

"Not at all." Brigitte said while she waved back at him. "Business was slow due to Atlas always trying to innovate and update their equipment, so he and my mother decided it would be best to move to a place where people would appreciate his talents."

"Vale isn't militarized like Atlas, which means more Huntsmen and Huntresses as customers." Jaune said mostly to himself before he looked up to his guide. "I think that was a pretty smart move on his part."

"Indeed," Brigitte said. "How about you? You said you were born and raised here?"

"Yeah," Jaune said as he lifted his shield arm and scratched the back of his head. "I grew up just outside the kingdom. Not too eventful. I wanted to be a huntsman growing up and the rest is history."

"That's amazing." Brigitte commented with a smile. "Beacon must be exciting."

"Yeah." Jaune said with fake enthusiasm before he nodded. "It really is. Heads up though," Jaune commented while the two made their way across the field and found themselves at the tree line. "There could be Grimm waiting."

"You got a point." Brigitte said as she readied her weapon as well as her device that was fastened to her opposite forearm.

"What's that?" Jaune asked as they made their way through the tree line and found themselves once more in the dense forest.

Brigitte looked up with a happy glint in her eye as she was about to show Jaune her contraption, only for a screech to pierce the air and cause the two to cup their ears.

"AGH!" Jaune yelped as he clutched his injured arm. He took a few breaths as he looked up to see a giant Nevermore swoop down toward their position. It matched the one team RWBY fought during their initiation as its wings flapped viciously while blinking in and out of the tree line.

"We must have been close to its nest." Jaune said as the two of them hurried further into the forest in order to gain more cover. "We need to get a better vantage poi-!"

"LOOK OUT!" Brigitte shouted.

Jaune turned towards his new acquaintance to question her interruption, only for a flurry of razor-sharp feathers to disrupt his train of thought. The blonde knight tried to raise his shield in time, but the sudden impact shook his body more than he expected which caused him to drop his shield. Panic spiked within Jaune as the flurry of feathers began to graze his damaged armor. The pressure on his armor and aura grew to it's breaking point as he collapsed to the ground and curled up to protect himself. With ragged breathing, he covered his face in a fruitless attempt to protect himself.

"HA!" Brigitte's voice pierced through the chaos and quelled the cacophony of feathers, much to Jaune's confusion.

The blonde knight uncovered his face and looked up to see Brigitte standing over him with her left arm guarding her body. The device he saw earlier had expanded into a substantially large barrier made of nothing but energy. Its blue hue tinted the foliage above them; giving the forest a turquoise filter. Feathers bounced off the barrier with little resistance for a few moments before the onslaught ceased.

Jaune could see that Brigitte wasted no time during the break they had as she scrambled for Jaune's shield. Once she got a hold of it and brushed a bit of moist dirt off the surface, she turned back to the blonde knight.

"We need to move!" Brigitte shouted as she tossed the shield back to its owner and began to sprint in their intended direction.

Jaune didn't have the time, nor the privilege to object at her order as another screech from the Nevermore pierced his ears. Before he knew it, he was running right at her side. Panicked breathing as well as rapid footprints plagued the serenity of the Emerald forest as they ran for what Jaune felt were hours. The screeches from the Nevermore faded from his hearing after a short time and it was then when Jaune decided to slow down.

"I think we're in the clear." Jaune said as he and Brigitte took heavy breaths. Jaune winced at the sharp pressure around his chest with each exhale, but remained calm as hyperventilating would only worsen his condition.

"Are you okay?" Brigitte said between breaths before she approached Jaune with a concerned glance.

"I'll be fi-AGH!." Jaune cried out while he tried to wave Brigitte off. He mentally kicked himself for waving with his injured arm. "Damn."

"You should get that looked at when you get back to Beacon." Brigitte said.

Jaune looked away at the mention of medical attention. "I don't do well in hospitals."

"That's no excuse, Jaune." Brigitte said with a furrowed brow and folded arms. "Do I need to escort you to the infirmary when we get there?"

"No." Jaune said as he pulled himself together. "I'll go. I promise." Brigitte's suspicious glare didn't help his situation as he nervously gulped. "I swear."

A few seconds passed as Brigitte's frown dissipated into a tired smile. "Then come on." she gestured towards their makeshift path. "Beacon shouldn't be too far now. Will you be okay?"

"Yeah," Jaune said as he matched Brigitte's tired smile and began to walk with her. "Thanks to that." he pointed to Brigitte's left arm. "I haven't seen a shield like that before."

That exuberant glint returned within Brigitte's eyes as she lifted her shield up and activated it once more. "Yup! Made it myself." Jaune could see the pride radiate from her filthy figure as she held it up for him to see. "It was hard balancing the durability with the weight, and its far from completion, but it gets the job done."

"So I've seen," Jaune said with a laugh. "How did you make it?"

Confusion surfaced within Jaune as Brigitte perked up at his question. She stared at him with wide eyes and a small smile threatened to spread across her face.

"You want to know?" Brigitte asked.

"Sure." Jaune said with a nervous chuckle. "I mean you saved my life twice now by using it, so why not?"

Brigitte's smile spread from ear to ear and with a deep breath, she lifted her device and showed it to Jaune. The blonde knight would soon regret his request as he was bombarded with technological jargon that put Ruby to absolute shame.

#

"And after testing the weight distribution as well as the energy output countless times," Brigitte said with unwavering enthusiasm. "I was finally able to keep the shield energy consistent as well as take heavy impacts without breaking the shield." Brigitte tilted her head to the side before she frowned a bit. "I still feel a lot of the impact when I block a strike, but I'll be working on that soon." She looked to Jaune with excitement written all over her face. "So, what do you think?"

Jaune appeared calm on the outside as the two grew closer to Beacon Academy, but little did Brigitte know that his brain was fried. Completely fried. More fried than any time he had been in class. Port, Oobleck, Goodwitch, and Ozpin combined had nothing on Brigitte. He was pretty sure he had just tried to process an entire advanced engineering class within a few hours. Needless to say, he was mentally spent.

"That was interesting." Jaune said as he looked down at Brigitte's shield. "And everything you said must be true considering we saw it in action against the Nevermore."

"I was surprised it held its integrity. Nevermore feathers are known notoriously for being extremely sharp."

"I'm just thankful it did." Jaune laughed nervously. Brigitte joined in moments later. Once the laughter died down, the two couldn't help but smile at one another. There was no specific reason for doing so, nor was there a specific reason for them not to smile. They just appreciated the company along with the silence.

The silence slowly evaporated as soft voices began to fill the air. Jaune and Brigitte perked up at the rising commotion, only to realize that they had made it to the Beacon Cliffs and could hear the bustling of voices within the academy.

"Huh." Jaune said as he stopped for a few moments. "How about that."

"C'mon." Brigitte said. "We're not far now."

The two made their way up the cliffs with relative ease and ended up right where Jaune launched himself the day before. The blonde knight looked on at the spot with a bit of distain before he and Brigitte passed it at a brisk pace. That distain continued to grow as they circled around the side of the school which in turn, began to bring unwanted memories to Jaune.

He shook off the mental pain a few seconds later and looked to Brigitte, only to notice that she was staring at the massive establishment with nothing but awe. Jaune could have been making the most ridiculous face or the most insulting gesture with his hands, and she wouldn't have noticed him in the slightest.

"It never gets old." Jaune said with a fake smile.

"Huh?" Brigitte asked as she whipped her head around to face Jaune.

"The view," Jaune said. "It never gets old." he regretted his white lie for only a second as unadulterated happiness practically radiated off of her figure. Jaune smiled genuinely at the sight before him, but blinked shortly after as he realized that they had made their way around the school and found themselves within the front courtyard. "Need me to show you where the docks are?" he asked.

"Oh!" Brigitte said. Jaune could tell that she had realized where they were as well. "I would like that." her smile was once again contagious as the two began to walk towards the docks. The short scrapes against the stone ground took some getting used to for both of them as they had been traveling in the soil and mud all day, but after the initial shock passed, Jaune and Brigitte relished in the new noises of civilization.

"So, here we are." Jaune said as they saw a Bullhead flying toward them. They still had a few minutes to talk, but it Jaune would've been lying if he said he wanted to talk for a little while longer. His shoulders relaxed as he let out a relieved sigh. "I can't thank you enough, Brigitte. Honestly."

"It was no trouble." Brigitte said as she waved off Jaune's gratitude with a hint of bashfulness.

"I beg to differ," Jaune said. "You helped me so much last night and today. If there's anything I can do to help you, please tell me how I can return the favor." his words were genuine and his tone was insistent.

Brigitte's eyes widened a bit at how serious Jaune had gotten so quickly. She remained silent for a few moments and put her thumb on her chin in order to think of anything.

"Besides going to the infirmary and getting those injuries looked at," Brigitte said with a stern tone. She then rose an eyebrow as her gaze shifted downward to Jaune's weapons. "I wouldn't mind taking a look at the shield." Brigitte looked up to see that Jaune had hesitated at her request with wide eyes. Her breath hitched as she realized what those words meant. "To fix!" she clarified with her arms out in a disengaging matter.

"Huh?" Jaune uttered out as the initial fear washed over him.

"I wouldn't mind fixing your weapons." Brigitte said with a more assertive voice. "Before you object, I will let you know that this is fair payment. I could always use the experience." Brigitte held out two fingers. "I also believe school is on break at the moment, so your weapons aren't immediately needed," she rose another finger. "And you shouldn't be training just yet, not with those injuries."

"I don't know." Jaune said as he scratched the back of his head with unease.

Brigitte tilted her head to the side and smiled a bit. "It will only take a few days," she said. "That will be more than enough time to get you healed. Especially with your aura." Brigitte offered her hand out while her gentle smile remained consistent.

Jaune was hesitant, but there was something trusting about her. He felt it during their trek throughout the entire forest and he still felt it. She felt warm. There was a warmth to her that made her trusting at an almost suspicious level. The blonde knight looked down at his damaged weapons and knew then and there what he needed to do.

"You've saved my life twice, so I think you taking care of my weapons for a few days wouldn't hurt." Jaune said and the excitement he saw not too long ago came back with a vengeance.

"Awesome!" Brigitte cheered as she jumped with triumph. "You won't regret this! I promise!"

"Here's my scroll number." Jaune said as he pulled out his scroll, "Send me a message when you're finished. I'll be here in the meantime."

"Excellent!" Brigitte said as she registered his name into her scroll. "Well my ride's here. I'll be seeing you, Jaune."

"You too, Brigitte." Jaune said.

The blonde waved her goodbye once she boarded and without a moment to lose, he turned on his heal and headed straight for the academy. He promised her he would get his injuries examined, but that promise had to wait just a bit. With each step he felt the familiar dread sink deeper into his gut. It felt greasy and disgusting, but it was something that needed to be done.

Jaune pressed on as he made his way to Beacon's infirmary without any confrontation. There was the occasional glare or whisper, but he couldn't help but be thankful at the lack of familiar faces as he entered the sterile atmosphere of the medical wing.

"Hi." Jaune said to the receptionist. He internally winced at the sigh she gave him before she turned towards him.

"He hasn't woken up, ki-!" The receptionist's eyes widened at the sight of him and Jaune couldn't help but squirm under her assessing gaze. "What happened to you?"

"Training accident." Jaune said quickly. "I'll get it looked at in a moment." Jaune ignored the crotchety receptionist's objections as he pressed on and felt the feeling in his gut worsen. The sickening sensation reached its crescendo when Jaune found himself in front of the room that contained the source of his shame.

"It's okay." Jaune said with a breath before he opened the door. "It's okay." he repeated as it took every bit of his willpower to look on at the sight before him.

Numerous IVs surrounded the hospital bed as the constant beating of the heart monitor grated against Jaune's ears. There was no scent that invaded Jaune's nose, but the sight of the patient became permanently branded within his memory.

Countless casts and bandages engulfed his frail frame to near completion, only his raven hair with a magenta streak along the side of his head could define who he was. Jaune looked on to the source of his shame and shuddered a bit.

"Hey, Ren." He whispered.

There was no response.

#

"I'm back!" Brigitte exclaimed with an excited smile as the familiar wave of heat hit her bluntly and without remorse. As per usual when entering her father's workshop.

"Brigitte!" a gruff voice echoed around the shop. The mechanic in question aimed her gaze downward to see her father approach, clad in heat protection and a welding mask. The mask did nothing to hide his glorious blonde beard though.

"Hello, Papa," Brigitte retained her enthusiasm as she bent down and gave her father, Torbjörn Lindholm a tight embrace. "How have you been?"

Busy as ever," Torbjörn said before he flipped his welding mas up with his crimson prosthetic claw of an arm. "Remind me to buy your mother something nice at the end of the month for deciding to have the shop in Vale.'

"I'll be sure to do that," Brigitte said with a chuckle. "Things haven't been too hectic, have they?"

"Oh, not at all." Torbjörn replied as he let go of his daughter. "I was able to manage. Ingrid was able to manage the book keeping while Reinhardt kept me company."

"Reinhardt's in town?!" Brigitte exclaimed as she put her materials as well as her new project on the her work table.

"Yep. He's out on an errand at the moment. Though I suppose he needs maintenance on his armor." Torbjörn said before he gave his daughter a knowing smile.

"I'm on it!" Brigitte's excitement was not to be contained in those moments of benevolent surprise. "Where has he been?" she asked as she wiped the sweat from her forehead.

"Anima." Torbjörn said. "He caught wind that bandits were making a name for themselves out in the villages that weren't under Mistral's protection. Got into a bit of a scrap with one of their leaders and needs his armor repaired."

"How long is he staying for?" Brigitte asked before she pulled out some old blueprints of Reinhardt's armor.

"About a month. Maybe more." Torbjörn said with a laugh. "He decided he needed a bit of a break and Help out around Vale in the process."

"Do you think he'll-!"

"You'll have to ask him." Torbjörn said abruptly.

"AMAZING!" Brigitte cheered and held her hands up in triumph. "This day can't get any better!"

"Oh?" Torbjörn asked while he leaned against one of the numerous table legs. "How so?"

"Got a client today. He's a student a Beacon and needed help with his shield. Payments good too." She laughed at the last part of her sentence.

"Terrific, Brigitte," Torbjörn said before it was followed with a deep chuckle. "Absolutely terrific."

"I'm going to clean up a bit before I start." Brigitte said as she stood up from her seat and Jaune's weapon to the side. "I don't need smoke, soot, and soil covering me from head to toe. Mom would kill me."

"That she would." Torbjörn said as he waved her off. "I'll hold down the fort here. No one's going to touch your work."

"Thanks, Papa." Brigitte said with a smile before she left the forge with a giddy laugh.

"She's growing up fast." Torbjörn said with a bit of pride in his voice. He shook his head along with a short chuckle. "But it wouldn't hurt to see what she was working on." he moved one of the stepladders he had all over his shop close to Brigitte's desk and made his way up to see what his daughter was working on.

"What the?" Torbjörn gasped as his heart nearly went still. His gaze remained fixated on the sword and shield before him. It had been ages since he had seen it, but he could never forget the amount of work he had done on it. Nor could he forget the true owner.

Torbjörn hopped off the stepladder and quickly made his way over to his scroll before quickly making his way out of his shop. The engineer shuffled through his contacts with baited breath and felt a lighting bolt of relief when he found the number he was looking for. Without hesitation, he pressed the call button and waited impatiently outside his shop for the call to pick up.

_"Hello?" _Torbejörn's short legs nearly buckled at the amount of nostalgia that came with the voice from the other end of the line.

"Jack!" Torbejörn shouted. "Jack, is that you?"

_"Torbejörn?" _Jack asked with surprise apparent in his voice. _"Is that you? It's been way too long!" _

"I agree, old timer." Torbejörn said as he looked up and relished at the countless memories. "It's been way too long." the engineer's gaze hardened shortly after though as he turned back to the entrance of his shop. "I'm sorry for cutting directly to the chase, but I got to ask something."

_"Well, retirement isn't keeping me busy, shoot." _Jack said with a casual attitude.

"Have you been on any missions of any caliber as of late?" Torbejörn asked as his deep voice mixed well with his serious attitude. "Anything Oz wanted you on?" There was a long pause on the other end. "Jack?"

_"Nothing worth mentioning. Surveillance, security, and basic search and destroy missions in Vaccuo. What's going on."_

"Do you still use your sword?" Torbejörn asked as his mind raced a mile a minute.

_"I haven't touched it let alone seen it since…" _the silence came back with an unrelenting vengeance as Torbejörn let out a sigh. _"Torbejörn," _Jack said with a more serious tone. _"What's this about?"_

"Apparently," Torbejörn said as he leaned back to stretch a bit. "My daughter took up her first job today."

_"I don't see why you-!" _

"Fixing your sword and shield." Torbejörn said. "A kite shield with a white base with two golden arcs. Sword fits at the top and the shield can collapse into a scabbard. It's on her workbench as we speak."

A sigh broke through on the other end of the call. _"Give me four days. I'm on my way." _

**So yeah. This is still a thing. I hope you all enjoy and I aim to get another chapter out soon. In the meantime, drop a comment, review, or if you have a question, sent me a PM. Like always, BE COMPASSIONATE AND BE FIERCE!**

**SPARKYDAPPERDAB19 SIGNING OFF!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own RWBY or Overwatch, they belong to their respective owners. ENJOY!**

Chapter Three: Reunions

The dorm room of Team JNPR was a far cry from what it used to be. Warm lighting and jovial sounds that came from all four teammates were replaced with a dimness and a silence that should have never been allowed in the first place. The only signs of life within the room were the sunlight that tried it's hardest to pierce through the drawn curtains and the shallow grunts of JNPR's leader.

"Thirty-five," Jaune grunted while he did another push-up. "Thirty-six. Thirty-seven. Thirty-eight." he grit his teeth as the pain from five days ago returned. The pain didn't stop him from going down for one more repetition, but it simmered at a consistent intensity that forced its presence within Jaune's core and right arm.

"Thirty-nine," Jaune grunted with a strained voice. With a few breaths as well as couple of seconds to rest, he went down one for one last rep.

"Forty!" Jaune shouted before he collapsed to the ground. Sweat continued to pour all over his body as he rolled onto his back and let out a few more ragged breaths. "That's five sets. Two more than yesterday." he said to himself in between breaths before he reached over to his scroll and noted how much he had exercised that morning.

"Alright," Jaune said while he rose from the damp carpet before he swung his arms out. The satisfaction that came with the popping of his joints as well as the loose sensation of his arms made the payoff of his work all the better. Once he shook off the tired nature that came with his morning workout, Jaune let out a relieved breath and hoisted himself up from the carpet. "Time to get ready." he said to himself while he picked up his scroll off the floor.

A pang of shame hit him square in the heart as he noticed there had been no notifications since they had left. _'How many weeks had it been since they left?'_ Jaune thought as he looked on at his blank scroll. _'No more than two?'_

With a shallow sigh that contradicted his improved mood, he shut his scroll off and grabbed the toiletries he needed before he entered the bathroom to shower off all the excess sweat that came with his efforts. The cold stillness of the bathroom clashed with the intense heat of the shower as the vapor rose over the curtain and filled the small bathroom within mere minutes. The sudden heat of the water made Jaune jolt a bit with surprise; but once the initial shock wore off, the blonde knight had no problem immersing himself in the heat.

After a quick but thorough scrub, Jaune turned the water off and wasted no time drying himself with a quick pace. Another jolt ran through his bare body as he opened the door, only to be greeted with the unforgiving morning cold that came with the bleakness of his room. With only the chattering of his teeth to occupy his ears, Jaune raced to his closet and found little comfort in quickly dressing into his normal attire which consisted of a white T-shirt, jeans, and his Pumpkin Pete hoodie; his damp hair didn't help to alleviate any of the unforgiving cold.

"Okay." Jaune said as he patted the face of the mascot on his hoodie. He looked over to his scroll to see it was only nine AM. There was plenty of time in the day to do what he wanted and then some.

"Heh." he couldn't help but let out a short impulse of laughter as he realized that things were finally looking up. It was an odd feeling that refused to leave him as he left his dorm room with his wallet and scroll. It didn't bother nor nag at him. It was more of a realization that he had trouble realizing.

Jaune smiled at the notion as his padded footsteps occupied him throughout the Beacon halls. The sparse faces of the student body made his trek much more pleasant than the ones two weeks prior and he made note to relish the lax nature of the school before the majority of the student body returned from the summer break.

That was the last mental note Jaune was able to make for a while as his attention was piqued at the sight of a familiar white-haired student who was walking toward his direction. The secure feeling he had moments prior wavered a bit at her presence which was devoid of any positive emotion.

Weiss Schnee's footsteps were much quicker than Jaune's and her gaze was fixated to what was in front of her. There was no indication of emotion upon her face as she refused to lock eyes with Jaune. The blonde knight took a quick breath of confidence before he approached her.

"Hey, Weiss." Jaune said with all the confidence he could muster. Even he had to admit he sounded just a bit sheepish. He wouldn't know what Weiss thought as she completely ignored him. There was no roll of the eyes, no scoff of dissatisfaction, and no off handed remark at his incompetence. Weiss simply ignored him.

Jaune stopped in his footsteps at that realization and turned back, only to see Weiss continue in the direction of her dorm. He knew there was no point pursuing her. If what just happened was the outcome of his first impression, then he knew there was no salvaging anything for today.

"Okay then," Jaune said while he scratched the back of his head. "I guess Vale it is then." he did his best to shrug off the coldness he just faced and with the bit of time it took to finish his stroll from the dorm rooms to the docks, he could safely say his mood wasn't completely ruined.

Jaune couldn't help but frown at the fact that the bullhead wasn't present, but shrugged it off after a short curse at his misfortune. The moment of stillness left him to reflect on the last time he was at the docks, which made him form a smile on instinct.

Those tender moments of reminiscing about a certain mechanic sparked a thought that came with dread and embarrassment. Instead of fun conversations and laughter from both parties, a singular question remained in Jaune's mind.

"Did she ever mention where her shop was?" Jaune paled at his own question as a bullhead coincidently landed in front of him.

#

The intense heat of the furnace kept Brigitte warm as she tempered the flame with an ease she had acquired a long time ago. However, a frustrated huff escaped her as the mechanic looked on at the flames which were the constant reminder of her current task not being her project, but her fathers, who was busy with his breakfast.

"Honestly," Brigitte grumbled as the flames were her only outlet for conversation. "He could have finished this before he ate. He knows I have to finish up everything today." Brigitte sighed as she noticed that whatever her father was working on was about finished.

"How's it coming along?" Torbjörn's called out with a voice that broke through the roaring of the flames.

"Great timing on your part," Brigitte said as she turned away from the furnace. The difference in temperature was polarizing, but she didn't care. What mattered was getting back to her work. "Can you handle it from here?"

"Of course. Of course," Torbjörn said as he walked past his daughter with a stepladder in tow and used his prosthetic claw to grasp the molten metal. "Keep clear." he said with a chuckle before he got off the stepladder. No matter how much he trusted Brigitte, he would always tell her those words ever since she was old enough to work in his forge. He could tell Brigitte was already out of the way as he poured the boiling liquid into a familiar mold.

"It's been a while since you you've made a sword." Brigitte commented with a raised eyebrow.

"Client called in for one. Simple broadsword. Nothing more, nothing less." Torbjörn said as he continued with his work. "I need you to run some errands right now. Ingrid needs some things from the store."

"Wait, what?" Brigitte snapped back with disbelief in her voice. "You just told me that after you came back-!"

"I know what I said, Brigitte." Torbjörn interjected with a sternness that came with years of fatherhood. "A visitor is coming today and Ingrid wanted to make a pie for him. She's a bit busy at the moment so she wanted me to ask you to get the ingredients."

"Can't this wait?" Brigitte asked. Her father winced as he looked on at Brigitte who ran her soot covered hand over her forehead and bandanna she wore whenever she was in the forge. "I'm so close."

"Your passion project can wait a bit."

"It's not that, Papa!" Brigitte shouted with more embarrassment than protest." Torbjörn rose his left brow at the new bit of information as he looked on at his daughter who fidgeted with the new found stress. "It's my client's weapon. I promised him it would be ready today."

"And your work isn't going anywhere." Torbjörn said in a more calming manner. "This will only take what, a half-hour at most? Also…" he said before he pointed at Brigitte's hands.

Brigitte looked down at her hands for a few moments before her eyes widened with regret. The realization of what she ran through her hair only fueled her stress as she wanted to yell, but only found herself checking to see if she had her wallet before exiting the forge with a glare that could kill the most vicious Beowolf.

Torbjörn sighed as he pulled out his scroll and pressed on the contact he was looking for. The tone rang for a bit much to the engineer's irritation.

_"Hello?"_

"You can come in now." Torbjörn said before he hung up his scroll. It only took a few moments for the door of Torbjörn's workshop to open once again.

Instead of Brigitte, a man stood in the entrance. His pedestrian attire made up of jeans and a black T-shirt that clung tightly to his aged yet built figure threw Torbjörn off for a moment.

"Been a while since I've seen you in anything but a uniform," Torbjörn said while he hammered away at the heated sword. "But it's been quite some time, Jack."

"Indeed, it has, Torbjörn."

The engineer looked up from his sword and smiled at the man before him. He showed his age more than Torbjörn did, but it didn't stop him from carrying a natural confidence fit for a leader. His sapphire eyes met Torbjörn's with a sincerity and nostalgia for a few moments before the engineer let out a short chuckle and pointed to Jack's face.

"Added some new ones to the collection, I see." Torbjörn said while he gestured to Jack's two scars on his face.

"Yeah." Jack said with a bit of laughter as he traced his fingers across them and down to his chin. "Vaccuo has been interesting to say the least." he looked to Torbjörn, who continued to hammer away at his simple project. "How has everyone been?"

"My family? Or…" Torbjörn trailed off with a knowing glance, to which Jack shook his head with a chuckle.

"I mean your family, Torbjörn." Jack said as he leaned against one of the workbenches. "How old is Brigitte now?"

"Twenty," Torbjörn said with a smile before he struck down the hammer once more, causing sparks to ignite for a split second before extinguishing. "She and the rest of her siblings are doing well. Reinhardt helps with them whenever he's in town."

"How's he been?" Jack asked with raised eyebrows at the mention of their old friend.

"You can ask him yourself when he gets back from a mission he took."

"How long will that be?"

"Well," Torbjörn said as he rubbed his chin for a moment before giving Jack a sly glance. "Being a crossing guard for kindergarteners is a serious job." the engineer couldn't help but chuckle at his own joke before he shook his head. "I would say no more than a half hour. Brigitte is also getting ingredients for Ingrid's apple pie."

"Oooh," Jack uttered out with a nostalgic shudder before a smile appeared on his face. "I'm definitely staying for that." a short but sharp burst of laughter escaped Jack as bent over and gripped the bench. "Remember that time Reinhardt stole Angela's slice?"

"I still can't look at butter knives the same way." Torbjörn said as he winced at the sudden but horrifying memory. Needless to say, they all learned to never mess with Angela Ziegler when it came to Ingrid's homemade pie.

"Anyway," Torbjörn said before he shifted his focus back to his work, "Let me finish this up and then we can talk about that sword of yours."

"Is it around here?"

"Brigitte's keeps it on her workbench." Torbjörn said while he nodded his head in said direction. "She's been working on it non-stop since she came back from her time in the Emerald forest."

"Huh," Jack said as he walked over to the sword in question and grasped the scabbard with both hands. A smile crept onto his face as he grew accustom to the familiar weight it always had. "It's definitely Crocea Mors, that's for sure." Jack then unsheathed the sword and couldn't help but let out a low whistle at the shine it gave off. "I haven't seen it this pristine in a long time, Torbjörn."

"I said the same thing when I saw it earlier today." Torbjörn said before taking a pinch of ice dust and dropped it into a barrel of water. The water didn't freeze over, but the chill took effect as the engineer plunged the scalding hot blade into the water. Once his work was finished, he placed the sword on his workbench with his prosthetic claw and made his way over to Jack. "Apparently, the shield was malfunctioning something fierce and she decided she wanted to fix it. Couldn't help herself to fixing up the blade as well."

Jack instinctively pressed the trigger on the scabbard and couldn't help but revel in the nostalgia as it expanded into the shield he called his own for so many years. He let both sword and shield hang at his side for a second before he twirled the sword once.

"She did a stellar job," Jack said with a chuckle before he collapsed the shield and sheathed his old sword.

"Which begs the question," Torbjörn said as he folded his arm over his prosthetic. "Who had your sword in the first place?"

"I'm not quite sure. Can't be the family." Jack said before he carefully put the weapon back on Briggite's workbench. "Last I remember, it was hanging within the Arc's home as nothing but a family heirloom."

"I remember Maria throwing it in the attic before you left, but that's about it." Torbjörn said while he scratched his beard. "Well, Brigitte's client is coming in today to pick it up. If you have time, you can stay and wait for them."

"It would be nice to straighten this out," Jack said as he rubbed his chin. "Also, there's no way I'd pass up Ingrid's famous apple pie."

The two chuckled at his remark before they entered Torbjörn's home that was linked to the forge. All the while, Jack racked his brain in thinking just who could have gotten their hands on his old weapon.

#

"Gods above, why does this hurt so much?" Jaune asked between breaths as he kneeled over a public trashcan right outside the bullhead docks. Any and all positivity was swept away in those moments of guttural agony as another volley lurched up his throat.

"I…I think that was the rest of it." Jaune said after he wiped his mouth and stood up from the trashcan with wobbly legs. "Next time, lay off the fries at dinner." Jaune's stomach lurched at the mention of food and for a moment, the blonde thought he was going back for round three, but a few moments later proved he was alright.

_'Okay,'_ Jaune thought to himself while he checked his hoodie for any splash damage, once he was in the clear, he looked up from his position and pulled out his scroll. _'Brigitte mentioned last night that she would need all morning to finish it up, so calling her is probably out of the question,'_ Jaune decided to try anyway and after a few dial tones and an automated tone later, his assumption was proven correct.

_'Well, what about the maps on my scroll?'_ his quick and general searches for any weapon shops or blacksmiths came up all the same with different owners and stores he was already aware of.

"Dammit." Jaune said as he pocketed his scroll. The blonde knight's mind raced a mile a minute in order to solve his dilemma. He wasn't able to contact Brigitte, the shop he was looking for wasn't showing up on the dustnet, and he didn't want to go back to Beacon and wait until the afternoon. Should he ask around and see if anyone would know the place?

**GRRRMBLLL**

Any and all thoughts of his next course of action were halted dead in their tracks as Jaune looked down at his stomach and realized it was he who made such a demonic sound.

"Of course." Jaune said as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Clearly hurling up so much of last night's meal would call for more food, only to be thrown up on the way back to Beacon. Jaune sighed at the futile situation he found himself in and decided to head towards the center of town. He remembered Nora mentioning there was a good Pancake joint around there.

Jaune's mind tried to take him to a dark place at the mention of his teammate, especially since he was close to the place where everything went wrong, but the blonde refused the thought and shook his head. This was a good day. He was healed, his weapon was fixed, and he was meeting up with Brigitte today.

Unlike with Nora, the thought of Brigitte took his mind off of the constant reminders of what happened in Vale about a month prior and onto what would happen today. If she asked for additional payment to cover the costs, he was ready with a bit of Lien he had saved up over the year. If she wanted him to test out his equipment, he would be short his armor, but his aura could take any hits if need be. If she decided that his weapon was a lost cause and she invited him to her shop just to say that to his face… well, it would definitely suck and he'd rather not think about it.

Jaune quickly shook his head for a brief moment in order to clear his mind. Brigitte could wait. Nora could also wait. What mattered to him in those moments, was nothing but food as his stomach let out another demonic grumble; much to the dismay of a shocked mother and the amusement of her son as they passed by.

Jaune groaned with embarrassment while he scratched the back of his head. He hoped to find that pancake place as soon as possible, or someone would definitely call Vale authorities for either a noise complaint, or a Beowolf sighting within kingdom walls.

"Wait, what?" Jaune asked as he was torn once more from his train of thought as he looked out in front of him with wide eyes at a familiar sight. Sure, her face was basically plastered to the window of a bakery that was a few stores from where he was, but he knew for sure that it was Brigitte. Her red overalls and dark grey tank top matched the ones she wore over her armor five days ago and her rich brunette hair were dead giveaways.

Jaune had to snap himself out of his daze with a shake of his head before he looked on at the stroke of luck he had right before him. He had to laugh at how things turned out. Finally, everything was looking up for him.

With his new found joy he strolled up to the mechanic in question with a genuine grin upon his face and once he approached her, he noticed Brigitte was perhaps too enthralled with the countless pastries just behind the window pane. Her inability to notice Jaune was only proof of that as he stood behind Brigitte without her noticing at all. Jaune wouldn't lie, the smell was intoxicating to the most extreme; especially due to the brisk morning air that only helped distinguish the warm sweet smells that emitted from the bakery.

"They look so good." Jaune could hear Brigitte whisper with a euphoric shudder. Jaune swore he could see her drooling through the reflection of the glass.

**GRRRMMBLLE**

"AAGH!" Brigitte yelped as she jumped out of her dazed state and pressed her back to the window with startled fear in her eyes. Her fear evaporated seconds later as she was face to face with Jaune arc, who was looking down at his stomach in shame.

"Jaune?!" Brigitte exclaimed with a mixture of surprise and joy at the blonde knight who seemed to have an embarrassed demeanor.

"Hey Brigitte," Jaune said with an awkward chuckle after he looked up and gave her a sheepish smile. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay," Brigitte said with a hearty laugh and a wave of her hand, dismissing his loud and abrupt introduction. "It's great to see you."

"Couldn't agree with you more," Jaune said as he put his hands in his pockets. "How have you been?"

"Good!" she said with a new found enthusiasm. "Hard at work. Your weapon is just about finished. Just one or two more touch ups."

"That's great to hear." Jaune said with a smile that matched hers. "Taking a break at the moment?" confusion rose within him as he noticed Brigitte's smile quickly shift into a frown.

"Papa is making me run errands," Brigitte said before she folded her arms. "He knew today was the day I was supposed to have it done, yet he decides it's a good day to invite a friend over and have me get ingredients for a pie." Brigitte broke eye contact a few moments later with a sheepish look. "I may have gotten distracted by the smell though."

Jaune looked over her shoulder and let out a low whistle. "And the sight. I don't blame you." Jaune said. He really couldn't blame her as rows upon rows of pastries with mismatched colors of frosting decorated the front of the store like quilt of sugar baked goodness. "Want to get one? I haven't had anything to eat yet, so it'll be my treat."

Jaune was taken a bit aback by Brigitte's sudden wide eyes at his offer. So much so, that he wondered if he said something wrong.

"You sure?" Brigitte asked, which didn't quell the rising anxiety within Jaune's mind.

"I-I mean it's the least I could do, given everything you've done." Jaune shrugged with a nervous smile. Only to take a step back as the mechanic jumped up with triumph.

"WOO HOO!" Brigitte cheered. "Nothing is better than free pastries!"

"Wait, pastries?" Jaune asked upon hearing the plural nature of the treat in question, but was completely ignored as Brigitte grabbed his wrist and dragged him into the bakery with a strength that rivaled Nora's.

What happened next was a torrent of sweet smells and an unstoppable joy that came from Brigitte as she pointed to each and every treat she wanted so that the owner could get them. It wasn't much more than Jaune expected, but he made a mental note to treat Brigitte's love for baked goods like Nora's love for pancakes.

"And how about yourself?" Jaune snapped out of his train of thought as he noticed the tall woman behind the counter was referring to him. She gave him a polite smile and a chuckle as the blonde knight looked over to Brigitte's pile of sweets.

"Just one doughnut for me please." Jaune said while he made sure he didn't groan at the total amount he saw on the cash register. With a little reluctance, he handed the owner the right amount of lien and shrunk at the sudden dent his savings took.

"I'd say its worth it." The tall lady behind the counter said with a soft and genuine smile before she nudged her head in Brigitte's direction. Jaune looked to his friend and he had to admit, it had been a while since he had seen anyone as happy as Brigitte was in those moments. It still didn't stop him from narrowing his eyes at the lady.

"You're just saying that to justify taking my money."

"Guilty." the owner said with a shrug and an accomplished smile.

Jaune took his change with a grain of salt before he turned to Brigitte who had her treats safely in a medium size paper bag. "Shall we?" Jaune asked as he opened the door.

"We shall." Brigitte said with a cheerful demeanor in her step.

Jaune closed the door behind them and took in a deep breath of fresh air. It was refreshing after bathing his nostrils in nothing but sugar. Nevertheless, the two proceeded down the street that began to bustle with the mid-morning pedestrians. Jaune looked back at Brigitte who was in the process of munching on a maple bar and couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.

"I'm guessing it's good?" Jaune asked as their pace remained consistent.

"So good," Brigitte said before she looked over to his small doughnut. "How about yours?"

"Pretty good." Jaune said. He looked down at Brigitte's bag and couldn't help but cringe at the cost of such tasty pastries. "Did you get some for your dad?"

"Nope." Brigitte said before a cheeky grin spread across her face. "It'll show him what happens when he gets in the way of my work." realization came over a moment later as she looked over at Jaune and eyed him with suspicion. "What are you saying, Jaune Arc?" She stopped in her tracks and put her hands on her hips with a gaze that kept consistent with her suspicion. "Can't a girl splurge every once and a while?"

"I-I mean… T-That's not what I…" Jaune began to blubber on with wide eyes while Brigitte looked on with an amusing glance. She wouldn't lie and say it was cute seeing him stumble over his words.

"Relax, Jaune." Brigitte said with a playful punch. "I know it's a lot, but I always work it off. See?" Brigitte pointed to the center of her tank top.

Jaune looked down to notice the design on her shirt entailed a weight with a bite taken from it with the words, 'I Like Exercise, Because I Love Eating.'

"Huh." Jaune said as he couldn't help but relate to a degree. Despite his discipline in regard to his calorie intake, he wouldn't lie and say he wouldn't pass up a good burger or the almighty dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets.

"In all seriousness," Brigitte said before she took another bite of her maple bar. There were a few moments of chewing before she looked at Jaune. "Thank you. Today hasn't gone off to the best start. This was a big help."

"Like I've said before, this was the least I could do." Jaune said with a reassuring smirk. "I can also help you with your shopping, if you'd like. You're still new to Vale, right?"

"Yeah," Brigitte looked away with dissatisfaction with that fact.

"I know a market that has good prices." Jaune tried his hardest to keep a positive demeanor as internally braced himself for what was to come. "My teammate and I would go there to get groceries once a week."

"How far is it?" Brigitte asked with a slightly apprehensive voice.

"Not far at all. Ten minutes in the opposite direction, tops." Jaune jerked his thumb backwards all with a reassuring smile. "Some of the stuff may be off brand, but it's good quality and most things are cheaper there too."

There was a pause before Brigitte's apprehension morphed into content as she gave the blonde knight a smile. "Lead the way, Fearless Leader."

Jaune wanted to freeze at the sudden name, but with every fiber of his being, he managed to keep a positive demeanor and even chuckled at the name.

"What's so funny?" Brigitte asked as they headed off toward their new destination.

"That's what my team calls me some times," Jaune said as he scratched the back of his neck. "I can't tell if they're joking more than half the time though."

"That's quite a coincidence," Brigitte said with a snicker at his last comment before her posture straightened and eyes widened. "Wait, you're a leader?" she asked with a bit of disbelief.

"For some reason, Professor Ozpin decided I would be the leader of Team JNPR." Jaune said with a shrug. "I still don't know why he chose me, but I try not to let any of them down." Jaune looked over to his friend and couldn't help but squirm under the gaze she was giving him.

"That's honestly amazing," Brigitte said as she kept with Jaune's pace. "Not only a huntsman in training, but a leader as well."

"It's definitely a lot of work," Jaune said with a small huff. "But so far, it's been worth it."

"That's what matters." Brigitte said before giving him a proud smile.

The two walked in silence for a few minutes before they arrived at the market Jaune had mentioned. Sure enough, Brigitte was surprised at the amount of goods they had in such a small shopping area of Vale. Nevertheless, she wasn't one to complain as the two got what they needed and decided to head back to her father's shop.

"Hey," Jaune said as he was carrying the paper bag of groceries they needed. "I'm sorry that this took more time out of your work."

"Please, Jaune." Brigitte replied with a dismissive way and relieved smile. "It's quite alright. I mean, free pastries and discounted groceries is a total win in my book. Just what I needed actually."

"Then I'm happy that I could help." Jaune said with a grin of his own.

The two of them shared the same happy demeanor they felt five days ago at the docks and couldn't help but revel in it. It had been hard for each of them to focus on their work, whether it be repairing damaged weapons or healing their damaged body. Nevertheless, the two of them couldn't help but feel that all of their work had paid off, yet neither knew they both felt the same way.

"Wait," Jaune said as a wave of anxiety overcame him, "Will your dad be mad that your later than usual?"

"Perhaps." Brigitte said with a shrug. "But it's only by a bit. Besides, he knew my plans for today."

"Whatever you say, Brigitte." Jaune said as he couldn't help but feel a bit worried.

#

"It shouldn't be taking her this long." Torbjörn groaned as he leaned a bit over his moderately sized dining room table. The rich mahogany complimented the bright and lively room to a close perfection as Torbjörn, Jack, and Ingrid Lindholm waited patiently for Brigitte to return.

"You're usually more patient than this, Torbjörn." Jack said as he finished his cup of coffee and set his mug on the coaster provided by Ingrid.

"That's when it comes to his work, Jack." Ingrid said with a short snicker. "This is my baking we're talking about." the tall and slender blonde got up from her seat and took Jack's empty mug. "Would you like more coffee?"

"Yes, please." Jack said before he looked over to his friend. "Give it a bit more time. I'm sure she's fine."

"She could be talking to a boy right now for all we know." Ingrid called out from the kitchen in a teasing tone.

Jack wasn't one to be surprised often, but the speed of which Torbjörn's head shot up slightly unnerved the older man. The engineers rigid posture remained consistent for about ten seconds before he slouched with a long exhale.

"Like that'll be the day." Torbjörn said with a huff as he looked down at his half empty coffee mug. "That's nothing to worry about anytime soon."

"Right." Jack said with an irked tone and a scratch behind his head. Thankfully, Ingrid came back just in time with more delicious coffee.

"I swear, Ozpin is rubbing off on me." Jack said before he took a sip. "I used to never touch the stuff. Then one meeting with the bastard later, I'm hooked."

"Perhaps those were his plans all along. Just getting the world hooked on coffee." Torbjorn said with an amused huff.

"Have you met with him anytime soon?" Ingrid asked as she sat down once more.

"Nothing yet," Jack replied. "But the minute he finds out that three of his former operatives are in the same kingdom, he'll definitely give us a call." Jack was about to continue, but a sudden knock at the front door caught all their attention. Especially Torbjörn who was excited for Brigitte's return.

"Hello again!" the sudden and booming voice echoed around the small household as a man who was much taller than Jack and Torbjörn opened the front door. His white tank top clung tightly to his toned torso while his khaki cargo pants were a few shades darker than his graying hair.

"Oh, it's just you." Torbjörn grumbled as he rested his bearded chin on his prosthetic claw. Jack turned back to the man in question as he only let out a hearty laugh.

"Come now, old friend." the hulking man said as he set a plastic bag on the nearby counter. "What's with the long fa-" any and all jovial attitude was swept away as the hulking man's eyes landed upon the third person in the dining room.

Jack knew this was inevitable, but with a small sigh, he put his coffee down and stood face to face with the man who was much taller than he was. His ocean blue eyes looked back at the taller man's good eye as well as the other that was heavily damaged that came with a sharp vertical scar.

"Is that you, Jack?" the man asked softly while his heavy accent remained rich.

"It's been a while, Reinhar-!" Jack wasn't even able to finish his sentence as he was engulfed in a sudden hug and picked up off the ground.

"HAHAHAHAHA!" Reinhardt exclaimed as his embrace grew tighter. "JACK! IT HAS BEEN WAY TOO LONG!"

"Reinhardt!" Jack gasped out with inclinations of desperation in his voice. "Too tight! Can't breathe!" Jack squirmed for a few more seconds before Reinhardt put him down.

"Can you really blame me?!" Reinhardt practically shouted with his signature enthusiasm before he slapped Jack's back with a satisfying sound. "How long has it been?!"

"Too long." Jack said between breaths as he looked up at Reinhardt with a smirk. "Clearly, time hasn't affected your enthusiasm."

"Like it ever could! Ha!" Reinhardt said while he walked around the table and sat beside Torbjörn's right side. "So, what brings you to Vale?"

"We're clearing up a misunderstanding," Torbjörn mentioned as he looked over to Jack with an amused smirk. "Someone's been using his old weapon."

"OH HO!" Reinhardt quickly looked over to Jack with disbelief in his eyes. "I haven't seen that sword in quite some time!" realization came over the hulking man as he looked to Torbjörn. "Is that what Brigitte has been working on?"

Torbjörn nodded at the question. "We were trying to figure out who had it in the first place. Brigitte mentioned one time that she took the job from a huntsman in training."

"But other than that, we can't think of anyone we know." Jack said as he leaned forward as his mind raced a mile a minute.

"Do you think it could be…" Reinhardt looked to Jack with a knowing glance.

"Can't be. Maria would rather him join the Atlas Military than let him be a huntsman." Jack said while he shook his head and let out a breath.

"How long has it been?" Reinhardt followed up.

"Reinhardt," Ingrid interjected with a knowing gaze. "Not now."

"Thanks, Ingrid." Jack said with a reassuring smile. The four of them sat there with a familiar silence. All of them knew the answer to Reinhardt's question though; it was too long.

"AHA!" Reinhardt snapped his fingers as everyone looked at him with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. "The person in question could be that boy I saw her walking with not too long ago!"

Another wave of silence overcame all of them, but unlike before, it was much colder and radiated from a certain engineer, much to the amusement of Jack and Ingrid.

"What?" Torbjörn asked with a stern tone.

"I was coming back from some errands when I saw them across the street going the opposite way!" Reinhardt's smile grew as the memory came back to him. "I was going to say something, but they were busy with their conversation and I didn't want to interrupt. They also grabbed some doughnuts from that one bakery close by."

"You didn't even try to stop and ask her where she was going?" Torbjorn asked with a frustration only a parent could possess.

"She seemed busy," Reinhardt said with a shrug. "I didn't want to be rude."

"You did the right thing, Dear." Ingrid said with a reassuring smile toward Reinhardt.

"My own wife is against me." Torbjörn said as he grasped his head with his good hand and prosthetic before he let out a defeated sigh.

"As she should be." Ingrid teased.

"What did this guy look like, Reinhardt?" Jack asked with intrigue as leaned forward and rested his forearm on the table.

"Well," Reinhardt said as he closed his eyes and folded his arms. "He was a bit taller than her. Blonde for sure. I couldn't tell you if he was a huntsman or not. He looked about her age, but his hoodie made it hard to determine anything else."

"Well," Ingrid said. "We won't know until she comes back. Thank you, Reinhardt."

"Of course!" Reinhardt replied with a curt nod.

Jack just sat there with a puzzled look on his face as the rest of his friends began another conversation. Just who could this person be? There was no way he could call Maria for answers, but the more he thought about the possibilities, the more he believed calling her was the only way to get any answers. With a quick breath, he pulled out his scroll and went through his contacts. He couldn't help but let his index finger hover over the woman in question and with a reassuring breath, he went to press on her icon.

"I'm back!" a familiar voice called out throughout the Lindholm home. All four heads looked up from their previous endeavors at the sight of Brigitte who entered with a medium size paper bag. "Sorry it took so long!"

"It's quite alright." Ingrid said as she stood up to greet her daughter with a warm hug. Once the two parted, the elder woman rose an eyebrow. "Although, I was expecting a bigger bag. Considering the list your father gave you."

"I had help." Brigitte said with a reassuring smile as she turned to Reinhardt. "Hey, Reinhardt."

"Hello again!" Reinhardt said with a wave as he remained at the table, yet retained his jovial personality.

"Mrrow." everyone's attention turned toward the sudden noise. Brigitte's eyes brightened up at the familiar sound.

"Mitzi!" Brigitte exclaimed as she made her way over to pet the rather large, white, and grumpy looking cat that made her way from the living room. "How have you been?"

"Of course, the cat wakes up when she gets home." Torbjörn grumbled with a disgruntled attitude that matched Mitzi's much to everyone's amusement.

"I didn't even know you had a cat." Jack said with raised eyebrows before he took another sip of coffee.

Brigitte looked up from playing with Mitzi and dawned a confused look at Jack. "Is this the friend you were talking about, Papa?"

"Yup," Torbjörn said with a nod. "He, Reinhardt, and I are all old friends."

The man in question stood up from his seat and offered out his hand. "Jack Morrison." Jack let out a short chuckle much to Brigitte's confusion. "You may not remember, but you were a baby when I first met you."

"Oh!" Brigitte said with surprise apparent in her voice and returned Jack's gesture. "You really are all old friends. It's great to meet you… again."

Jack let gave her a warm smile. "Likewise. Torbjörn has said much about you." Brigitte matched his smile, but internally dreaded the embarrassing stories her father might have told him.

"Speaking of friends," Reinhardt spoke up, earning Brigitte's attention. "Where is that boy I saw you with a little while ago?"

"He better not have run off with the ingredients." Torbjörn said with the same disgruntled tone he had moments before.

"Relax, Papa." Brigitte said while she rolled her eyes. "He just had to take a quick call. He'll be here soon. Said it was from a teammate."

"Wait," Torbjörn said as he leaned forward. "Teammate? He's a huntsman?"

"In training. He goes to Beacon." Brigitte said as she continued to pet her cat. "Leader too."

"Wow." Ingrid said with a grin full of surprise. "Sounds like quite the gentlemen. I take it he's the client for the sword you've been working on?"

"Yup!" Brigitte replied. "I ran into him on the way to the grocery store." she let out a nervous laugh before she looked at her mother. "I kind of forgot to tell him where we are, so talk about luck for him finding me in Vale."

"Indeed." Jack said while he chuckled at the scenario.

"Sorry, Brigitte. That took longer than expected," a sudden voice emitted throughout the Lindholm household as all eyes focused on the front door to see a fairly tall blonde standing there with a grocery bag in his arms. "Where should I put these?" he asked.

"Let me help you with that." Brigitte said as she got up from the floor and took the bag from Jaune. "Everyone, this is Jaune. I met him a few days ago and wanted to help him out with his weapon."

Jaune turned his attention to the group of people who sat around the dining room table. "It's nice to meet all of you." Jaune gave them a wave and a nervous smile before confusion took hold of his being. Each and every one of the people who sat around the table were staring at him with wide eyes and in silence.

Jaune looked over to Brigitte who had finished setting down their groceries before she noticed the sudden change in the atmosphere around them. She locked eyes with Jaune as the two couldn't make heads or tails of what any of the others were thinking.

"Um…" Jaune trailed off as he looked back at the group and slightly shifted his weight side to side in order to get his mind off the awkward situation.

"What's your name again?" the shorter man with the massive blonde beard asked the blonde knight with an unnerved voice.

"Jaune. Jaune Arc." Jaune said despite his confusion. He honestly had no idea how this introduction could go as shock overcame everyone as soon as he answered the question given to him. The blonde woman beside the bearded man place her hand over her chest with disbelief while the much bigger man let out a breath of astonishment.

"Jaune?" another voice spoke up and Jaune noticed it belonged to the man at the edge of the dining table.

Jaune's confusion only escalated exponentially as the elder looking man stood up from his chair and made his way toward the blonde knight. Despite being about the same height, Jaune couldn't help but squirm a bit under his gaze. The man's eyes were filled with nothing but disbelief as they bore into the huntsman in training. Jaune on the other hand, couldn't help but feel intimidated. It didn't help that the man before him had two scars across his whole face. Yet there was a familiarity about him that Jaune couldn't put his finger on. If he was being honest, he looked like a older, scarred version of himself.

Jaune's eyes widened as a smell overtook him. That was all he needed to answer any questions that lingered in his head. It was the smell of pine. It was a rich pine that brought his memory to about a decade ago and took him back to a time he believed he forgot that was full of nothing but long summer days in the vast Vale forest. He remembered the familiar pops and sizzles of the countless campfires he made by himself, the tough but rewarding hikes he embarked on, and the vast and wonderous starry night sky that came at the end of a long but fulfilling day. What came with those memories was the one person who took him on those trips. It was a person Jaune hadn't seen in a long time, nor did he ever believe he'd see again.

With a shaky breath, Jaune opened his mouth with a gaze that matched the man's disbelief.

"Grandpa Jack?"

**Well how about that? Reunions all around. This was a really fun chapter to write and I hope you all enjoy it. Shoutouts to Jauneforever and Noble4259 for helping me out with the chapter. Definitely a great help. Like always, favorite, follow, and feel free to leave a comment or review. Until next time, BE COMPASSIONATE AND BE FIERCE!**

**SPARKYDAPPERDAB19 SIGNING OFF! **


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own RWBY or Overwatch. They belong to their respective owners. Shout outs to Noble4259 and Jauneforever for helping me out with this. ENJOY!**

Chapter Four: Sparks

There was a stillness that came right after Jaune's two short words that cleared up any and all misunderstandings within the last few days. It was unbelievable for everyone who occupied the small home.

Jaune was left speechless at the man before him. It all came back to him in droves. He remembered the countless bits of advice his grandfather gave him, the times the older man chastised him for cutting corners with his chores, and the unforgettable moments of taking in unbelievable views after long days of hiking during their summer camping trips.

There were no more words to be shared as Jaune felt himself quickly engulfed by his grandfather's arms and pulled toward him. Jaune gasped at the sudden and tight embrace of his grandfather and paused for a moment to take it all in. Grandpa Jack's all too familiar and nostalgic scent came back in overwhelming droves and was the cause of the tears that formed in Jaune's eyes. Jaune let out a long breath as he reciprocated his grandfather's gesture and matched his strength with ease.

"My, boy," Jack said as Jaune could feel him shake ever so slightly.

Jaune smiled at his grandfather's words and remembered the countless times he heard them from years ago. The two broke apart from their hug a few moments later, yet Jack still had his hands on Jaune's shoulders. Jack retained his smile and the joy in his eyes as he couldn't help but laugh.

"Look at you. You've grown so much."

"Nine years does that to people, Grandpa." Jaune said before he let out a quick chuckle.

"You're as tall as I am now!" Jack said with a bit of disbelief as he measured himself to his grandson. Jaune couldn't help but give him a toothy grin. "I don't believe this! Who let you get so tall?"

"Saph asks me that every time I see her." Jaune said as he rolled his eyes at the memories, but he could see Jack's eyes widen at the mention of his sister.

"THIS IS WONDERFUL!" Jaune jumped at the sudden outburst as he saw the massive man behind his grandfather shoot up from his seat and quickly make his way over to both of them with a joy that dwarfed Nora's. "JAUNE! IT SO GOOD TO SEE YOU!"

"Wha-AAGH!" Jaune cried out as the hulking stranger lifted Jaune off the ground in a hug that Jaune swore broke something of his.

"I tried to keep him in his seat, Jack." Ingrid said as she and Torbjörn stood up from their seats and joined their friend and Jack's grandson. "But you know how he is."

"It's alright, Ingrid," Jack said with his hands on his hips. "I don't blame him." Jack couldn't help but smile at the sight of Jaune struggling within Reinhardt's hug.

"HAHAHAHA! WHAT A GLORIOUS DAY!" Reinhardt cheered as his volume nearly made the walls of Torbjörn's house shake. "First Jack, now his grandson! It has been too long all around!"

"Let the boy breath, Reinhardt." Torbjörn said as he swatted the massive man's thigh with his prosthetic arm. "Brothers know he needs the air."

Reinhardt only laughed in response as he let go of the blonde huntsman in training. Jaune gasped as he was released from the sudden pressure and took a few steps back with confusion rising within him.

"Jaune," the blonde knight's attention turned to his grandfather who walked in front of the massive, mustached man. "This is Reinhardt Wilhelm. He knew you when you were a toddler and I doubt you remember him. Or even Torbjörn and his wife, Ingrid. They would come by every so often at gatherings."

Jaune's gaze turned to the rest of the new faces and he didn't know if should have felt happy, or unsettled at the familiarity in their eyes. He chalked it up to being too young to remember and decided that it would be best to just embrace it.

"It's nice to meet you all… again apparently." Jaune said with a nervous smile. He scratched the back of his head as he didn't know what else to say.

"Jack's not kidding either," Ingrid said with a bright smile as she walked up to Jaune and pinched both his cheeks. "I remember holding you when you were a few months old and pinched your cheeks just like this. Your sisters laughed so hard at the sight."

"Huh," Jaune said at the revelation. "I'll be sure to ask if any of them remember." Jaune rubbed his cheeks the second Ingrid let go.

"Where are my manners? Sit down!" Ingrid said as she tied her luscious blonde hair up into a pony tail. "I'll get started on the pie. Do you drink coffee, Jaune?"

"Not really," Jaune said with a shaky voice as he complied and sat down at the well-furnished table. "Could I perhaps have a glass of water please?"

"I got you, Jaune." Brigitte spoke up as she walked over to the sink with cup in hand. The two locked eyes for a moment as they tried to process what was happening. Disbelief was apparent in both of them as they both took in each other's reactions. "Here you go." she said with a cheerful voice as she placed the glass over a coaster that she set in front of Jaune. She then sat to Jaune's left and gave him a reassuring thumbs up and a toothy grin.

"Thanks." Jaune said as he immediately picked up the glass and took a big gulp of water.

"Mrrow." everyone's attention was aimed at Mitzi who had hopped up onto Jaune's lap and made herself comfortable on Jaune's lap.

"Oh!" Jaune said with a nervous grin. "Didn't know you had a cat."

"She likes you." Brigitte said with a grin as she pet Mitzi's head.

"I still can't believe this," Jack said as he sat down, across from Jaune. The disbelief in his eyes was still apparent. "I mean, look at you, Jaune!" A hearty laughter escaped the older man as he placed a hand on his knee and leaned forward. "How have you been? I know there's so much more to ask, but still. How have you been?"

"I've been alright," Jaune said. "Definitely busy." He set the glass down on the coaster and scratched the back of his head.

"We just heard that you're a student at Beacon," Torbjörn said as he leaned forward and rested his forearms on the table. "Leader too."

"Brigitte told you?" Jaune asked with raised eyebrows.

"Just now," Jack said. He matched Torbjörn's intrigue as he focused on Jaune. "I got to say, this does clear up the confusion on my old sword."

"Wait, your sword?" both Jaune and Brigitte said at the same time, which earned a chuckle from Torbjörn and a strong laugh from Reinhardt.

"Yep," Jack said as he leaned back in his chair with his arms folded. "It used to belong to my grandfather's, until he gave it to me. Still though, I haven't used Crocea Mors for a long time."

"I thought it was only used in the war." Jaune said as he remembered what his father used to tell him about the old sword.

"Believe me, Jaune, it has seen more action than you think." Jack said. His voice grated for a moment at the sudden memories of utilizing the sword to its fullest in the heat of battle. "With later jobs becoming more and dangerous, I decided to opt for more advanced weapons and let the old blade be an heirloom once more." his attention turned away from his grandson and focused on Brigitte. "You did a damn good job on the repairs by the way. Hadn't felt the shield open that smoothly in a long time."

"Oh! Uh… Thanks. It's the first time I've worked on a weapon like yours, I mean Jaune's. I mean…" Brigitte's gaze averted Jack's as she stumbled over her words much to everyone's amusement.

"So, this is what it looks like from the outside," Jaune said as he propped his elbow onto the table and cupped his chin in his palm all while giving Brigitte an amused glance.

"It's fine, Brigitte. It's Jaune's sword." Jack said with a small nod towards his grandson. "It was supposed to be his anyway."

Brigitte wasn't too embarrassed to notice Jack's eyes narrow ever so slightly at his comment. Not to mention the uncomfortable silence from Reinhardt or her father. Even Jaune seem to know what Jack was about to ask.

"How has she been, Jaune?" Jack suddenly asked with more caution than anything else. "Does she even know you're here?"

Brigitte looked over to Jaune with a bit of confusion and it only grew as she saw Jaune look away from Jack with definite distain.

"Mom's been alright." Jaune said as he rubbed his neck all while looking down at his shoes. "And yeah she knew I was accepted into Beacon. She definitely wasn't excited about it." Jaune internally winced at the four-hour conversation he and his mother had the night he got his acceptance letter.

"Guess that explains the sword." Torbjörn piped up as he looked at Jaune. "Most huntsmen and huntresses in training make their own weapons. It allows them to really work their style or who they are into their combat."

"Mom told me I'd get no support from her," Jaune said with a discouraged tone and noticed his grandfather glare not at him, but at the subject at hand. "So, I picked the next best thing and headed off. Beacon has been really generous with me using their facility. They've allowed me to stay during the break."

"That's a relief," Reinhardt interjected. "When we were students and break would begin, we had to fend for ourselves as a survival assignment."

"Wait," Jaune said as he turned to Reinhardt. "You were a student at Beacon too?"

"I was a student, yes." Reinhardt said as he put a hand on his knee. "But I went to Atlas. We all did. The three of us," He pointed to Jack and Torbjörn. "were all on the same team."

"Don't forget our third year at Beacon for the Vytal Festival." Torbjörn said with a smirk, to which Jack cupped his face in his hands.

"Don't remind me of all the trouble you two got me into," Jack groaned. "I couldn't look Ana in the eye for two weeks after the noodle incident?"

"The noodle incident?" Brigitte asked as her voice rose with curiosity.

"That's when it took place?" Jaune suddenly asked wide eyed and with a huge grin.

Jack shook his head and let out a breath. "Telling you that story was a mistake, Jaune. And we don't need anyone else to spread it around." his eyes shifted over to Brigitte and he pointed a finger at her. "All of the Huntsmen schools knowing the whole story thirty-eight years ago is enough for my lifetime."

"Aww." Brigitte said as she looked down dejectedly while Jaune snickered at her misfortune.

"Speaking of Ana," Reinhardt said before he looked to Jack, and Jaune noticed the sudden intrigue within Reinhardt. "Have you heard from her lately?"

"Not really," Jack said with a shake of his head before he took a sip of coffee. "Last I heard from her was a couple years ago."

"I see," Reinhardt said with a small nod before he turned to Jaune. "So Jaune, Brigitte also mentioned that you're a team leader?"

"Yeah." Jaune said as he hid the pang of guilt he felt at the top of his heart. "Ozpin made me the leader of Team JNPR."

"Well done!" Reinhardt bellowed with folded arms. "That's quite the accomplishment! I know Ozpin wouldn't just give that title to anyone."

"It hasn't been easy," Jaune said as his hand instinctively went and cupped the back of his neck. "But I didn't expect it to be."

"Well you're not in it alone," Jack said as grinned at the memories "I remember what it was like to be a leader too and you're on the right path with the mentality you have. If it's easy, then you're doing something wrong." Jack chuckled at the last part as well as Torbjörn and Reinhardt.

"Haven't heard that one before." Jaune grumbled a bit as he looked at his water. He let out a small groan as he remembered the countless times his grandpa had told him that.

"So, who's in your team?" Jack asked curiously. "I pray it's nothing like us. I pitied Ana the moment we all discovered she would be teamed up with the three of us for four years."

"At the end of it all, I pitied us more." Torbjörn muttered and shuddered at the relentless memories of their time at Atlas. Reinhardt nudged the engineer before gesturing to Jaune.

"Well," Jaune said as he grinned at Jack in his friends, all while having a death grip on his glass. "Ren and Nora are my teammates and Pyrrha is my partner. So far we've gotten along pretty well."

"Pyrrha?" Ingrid asked as she turned towards Jaune's way from the kitchen. "Why does that name sound familiar?"

"Brigitte would watch Pyrrha Nikos fight a few years ago when she competed in the Mistral tournament." Torbjörn called out to his wife. "Girl was practically obsessed with her for a while. She couldn't walk around the house without her nose glued to her scroll."

"Oh, yes!" Ingrid said as she snapped her fingers. "I remember seeing something online a while back saying she goes to Beacon now. Mistral was not happy about that."

"You're telling me." Brigitte said with folded arms and a sigh. "I couldn't go on any of my usual sights without someone having a meltdown." She then shook her head with an amused grin. "That's got to be rough having your partner be confused with a celebrity around the school."

"Uh, Brigitte," Jack earned the mechanic's attention and nudged his head towards his grandson.

Brigitte looked to her new friend and noticed that he was scratching the back of his head feverishly with a nervous smile on his face.

"No…" Brigitte said with wide eyes.

"She pinned me to a tree during initiation with her spear. The first person we made eye contact with would be our partner for the rest of our time at Beacon." Jaune said with a nervous chuckle. There wasn't much to be said after as Brigitte remained still, yet kept her wide eyes directly on Jaune.

"I think you broke her, Jaune." Jack said as he finished the rest of his coffee.

"Can confirm." Torbjörn said as he cracked an amused smile. "Give her a minute. She's just taking it all in."

"Is this normal?" Jaune asked with concern as he waved a hand in front of Brigitte, only for her to not respond at all.

"You wouldn't act the same if you found out your friend was partnered with one of your role models?" Reinhardt asked jovially.

"Point taken." Jaune said before he shrugged.

"Pyrrha Nikos is your partner?!" Brigitte yelled, causing Jaune to jump in his seat and winced as he felt Mitzi's claws dig into his thighs.

"Y-yeah." Jaune said still a little shaken while picking up the cat and setting her down on the floor. "She's been…" Jaune paused for a moment as he looked at the excitement in Brigitte's eyes. "She helped me out when we started school. I owe a lot to her."

"First a Beacon student, then a leader, now this?!" Brigitte said with an exuberance that confused Jaune.

"Should I be concerned?" Jaune asked as he nervously leaned away from his friend.

"What?" Brigitte aske bewildered. "No! I'm not mad at all." Brigitte tilted her head to once side "Maybe a bit jealous, but not mad."

"Jealous is an understatement." Torbjörn said under his breath, but the glare he received from Brigitte made it apparent that he didn't speak soft enough.

"Brigitte, why don't you show Jaune the work you did on his blade?" Ingrid asked from the kitchen. "It'll take a bit for the pie to be ready, so you can finish up what you need to do and let him try it out."

Brigitte looked to her mother who had an endearing smile as she cut the apples with confident precision. Brigitte matched Ingrid's delight as she stood up from her seat.

"Come on, Jaune." Brigitte said. "I'll show you the progress I made." she then turned to Jack. "Would you like to come to, Mr. Morrison?"

"I'll catch up with you two." Jack said with a friendly wave.

Brigitte gave him a curt nod before she and Jaune headed to the forge. Leaving the older team in a small pause.

"Quite the grandson you have there," Ingrid said while flattening the dough for the pie. "You must be proud."

"I am, Ingrid," Jack said as he rubbed his chin while eyeing the door Jaune just exited from. "I really am."

#

"Well that was something." Brigitte said as she and Jaune entered her and her father's workshop. She couldn't help but laugh at Jaunes reaction to the sudden heat as he closed his eyes and put his hands up.

"You're telling me," Jaune said as he slowly blinked in order to get used to the sudden rise in temperature. "I can't believe it's him."

"You said it was a decade since you've seen him?"

"About nine years," Jaune clarified. "There's so much I have to ask him. I don't think I was able to get a question in back there."

"Papa and Reinhardt can be overwhelming like that sometimes." Brigitte rolled her eyes at the amount of times her newly acquainted friends were intimidated by her family.

"Is the big guy your uncle?" Jaune asked as the two made their way over to Brigitte's workbench.

"He's my Godfather, but I treat him like my uncle." Brigitte looked back at Jaune and smiled at his surprised reaction. "He and Papa go way back. I think they knew each other before they were students at Atlas."

"Huh." Jaune said. "Grandpa rarely mentioned his times as a huntsman. It was mostly camping trips and stories about him growing up."

"By the Brothers, don't mention the word 'stories' around Reinhardt." Brigitte said as she couldn't help but facepalm at the hours wasted by the jovial man. "You'll thank me later."

Jaune rose an eyebrow at the sudden downgrade in Brigitte's mood, but shrugged off the notion as her mood reverted back to its cheerful demeanor. "So! I know it's not entirely done, but would you mind if I finished it up? It won't take too long, I promise."

"Sure," Jaune said with a shrug. "I certainly don't mind waiting around." The blonde knight couldn't help but let out a low whistle as he eyed the ludicrous number of tools and finished weapons that were mounted on the walls. "Did your father make all of these?"

"Mhm," Brigitte said as she focused on her work. "They're mostly Papa's work, but I contributed to the sets of armor a few years back."

The mention of armor made Jaune notice more of her work that was propped up on a few mannequins and there was no doubt left in his mind that Crocea Mors was in good hands. The work was a bit on the amateur side in comparison to the other weapons, but he could see the amount of work that was within each plate of armor.

"These are amazing, Brigitte." Jaune said with wonder. "I haven't seen anything like this at Beacon."

"No surprise there." Brigitte mumbled just loud enough for Jaune to hear.

"What do you mean?"

"The combat that is taught at the academies is aura based." Brigitte said as she tinkered away at Jaune's weapon. "Offense, defense, and strategy are all based around a Huntsmen's aura and semblance. Atlas is the only kingdom that strongly encourages the use of armor, given their military stature."

Jaune felt a surge of unease as he noticed Brigitte's shoulder's tense up as she continued on with both her explanation, and her work.

"But Huntsmen and Huntresses around these parts? They think it's a hinderance on their combat ability." the ferocity of scraping metal only grew more intense. "All they care to rely on is there aura with no consideration if it runs out. They don't care if they run a high risk of getting hurt or killed, just so it doesn't mess with their damn clothes!" with one last ferocious scrape against Crocea Mors, Brigitte set the whetstone down with a sharp bang and lowered her head.

"Brigitte?" Jaune asked as he found himself suddenly scared to move forward, yet continued on anyway. "Is everything okay?"

Jaune walked up to her side and noticed that she blinked a few times before she looked up at the blonde knight. "Oh!" shock and shame came over her moments later as she did her best not to shrink before Jaune. "I'm sorry. Sometimes I get carried away, especially when I'm working."

"It's okay," Jaune said while he put his hands up in a calming manner. "You actually do have a point there." Jaune placed a thumb beneath his chin. "Most people I know don't wear any protection whatsoever. I think maybe three or four of my classmates do and that's it."

"Really?" Brigitte asked with more surprise in her voice.

"Yup." Jaune said and was internally relieved to the sudden frustration that radiated from Brigitte had dissipated. "Pyrrha wears some armor around her legs, and another student named Cardin wears a full set as well as two of his teammates. Other than that, no one I really know."

"Not even the professors?" Brigitte asked as she began to resume her work.

"Nope. But with good reason I think." Jaune said as he snickered. "Oobleck is too fast, Goodwitch knows how to keep her weaknesses from being exploited, Ozpin is headmaster for a reason, and Port is….Port." Jaune said with a reassuring nod.

"Do I want to know about the last one?"

"From what I got with just the first impression, Professor Port and your Godfather would get along well."

"Ah." Brigitte said as she squirmed in response to the brief silence. "Hey, I'm sorry for losing my cool there for a second."

"It's okay, Brigitte. Honest." Jaune said with a caring smile. "It makes sense, and you being that concerned for other people's safety is honestly more of a relief than a concern."

"Thanks, Jaune." Brigitte said. "I hate seeing people get hurt, especially when it's preventable."

Jaune stood there for a few moments as his head and heart ached at the same time.

**_"YOUR FAULT!"_**

"Yeah." Jaune said before blinking a few times. "Me too."

"I'd assume so, given that you're a leader." Brigitte said as she set her screwdriver down. "Speaking of which, how is it being the leader of Pyrrha Nikos?" Brigitte smiled as she folded her arms. "Out of anyone, I'd thought she'd be a leader at Beacon." Brigitte's eyes widened a moment later. "No offense."

"None taken." Jaune said with a laugh and a dismissive wave of his hand. "I think that too, from time to time. But when it comes to being her leader in particular, I'll have to say I'm really lucky."

"Because she carries the team?" Brigitte asked with a sly smirk.

"Nope," Jaune said with a smirk that matched hers. "She's just really supportive." Jaune hid his hands behind his back and balled them up into fists, "She listens to what I have to say about improving the team and isn't afraid to give polite criticism if I ever mess up. Not everyone has a team that gets along with each other."

"I'm not too surprised at that. It must be rough for some."

"You're telling me, my friend Ruby has Weiss Schnee as a partner and a faunus as a teammate."

Brigitte widened her eyes at the situation and let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "That…sounds tense."

"It was for a bit, but they're all friends now." Jaune said with a reassuring smile.

"What about the rest of your team?" Brigitte asked as she turned back to Jaune's sword. Jaune was lucky that she was too focused on her work to hear him irk at the sudden mention of his team.

"Well they're childhood friends actually, Nora's our heavy hitter, and Ren is more mobile and proficient at mid to close range."

"That's pretty well balanced along with Pyrrha." Brigitte said with intrigue. "You're pretty lucky, Jaune."

"Yeah." Jaune said as he looked down at his feet and forced himself to keep smiling.

"You mentioned that you're staying at Beacon right now," Brigitte spoke up over her work. "Is your team with you?"

"Ah, no." Jaune said as his hand went up and scratched his head on instinct. "They're all spending their break in Argus. Ms. Goodwitch wanted me to stay here and get some extra training in. Nora and Ren don't really have a home besides Beacon, so Pyrrha offered them to stay with her."

"That was nice of her."

"Yup." Jaune said as he tried to quell his internal panicking. "They'll be back when school starts back up."

"Good to know." Brigitte said with a tone that was a bit too cheerful.

"So," Jaune asked. "How's it coming along? I swear I'm not being impatient."

"Oh really?" Brigitte asked with false suspicion before chuckling a few moments later. "I'm just about done. All it really needed was some sharpening and something else. I was almost done with that before Papa sent me on those errands."

"Really?" Jaune asked bewildered. "Earlier it sounded like he stopped you halfway."

"Not really. It made me mad that he did that right before I was finished." Brigitte said as she finished up the last touches.

"Alright! Here you are!" Brigitte held the sheathed sword horizontally with both hands and gifted it to Jaune with a sweet grin.

Jaune only stared on with awe at the sleek craftmanship. It took him a moment to realize the sword in front of him use to be the Arc's heirloom. He let out a breath and felt his eyes widen to unfathomable proportions.

"I…I don't know what to say."

"You don't need to say anything, Jaune." Jaune looked up from the craftsmanship to see Brigitte's eyes filled with nothing but excitement and accomplishment. "See how it feels."

"Oh! Right." Jaune said while taking the sword and strapping the shield onto his left forearm.

"It works exactly how it used to before I got my hands on it." Brigitte said with excitement as she watched Jaune feel the familiar weight.

"Alright." Jaune said as he made sure he had enough space. With a breath, Jaune flexed his left arm and the sudden change expanded his shield with a satisfying sound. "Woah."

"Sounds good, right?"

"I've never heard it sound this good before." Jaune said before he looked down and marveled at Brigitte's work. The paint was a solid white with a gold trim all around and the gold insignia of the Arc family shined brighter than ever. The rough wooden texture along with the indentations where the shield expanded outwards were gone. It was still Crocea Mors, but much more refined.

Jaune couldn't help but let out an exasperated breath of laughter as he shook his head. "This is too good to be true."

"That's only half of it." Brigitte said. Jaune looked up at his friend who was leaning against her workbench with folded arms. She nodded her head towards Jaune's weapon with a smirk.

"Right. Right." Jaune nodded as he unsheathed the sword.

Crocea Mors retained the same design it had before he met Brigitte, but the quality was out of this world. Just like with the shield, it felt more refined. It had more of an edge and Jaune dared not touch to see how sharp it was in fear of cutting himself. The grip was solid and didn't rub against his hand the wrong way, the weight was balanced as he held it upwards, and he couldn't help but marvel at the shine it gave off.

"This is amazing, Brigitte." Jaune said as he felt his smile only grow. He couldn't remember the last time he smiled this much. "I can't believe this."

"That's some weapon, Jaune," Brigitte said as she stepped forward. "I'm not an expert like Papa, but that sword gave me a run for my money. It's extremely durable and still kept an edge, despite not being maintained in a long time."

"Huh." Jaune said as he sheathed the blade.

"Oh! Check this out!" Brigitte said as she held her hand out. "Hand me your scroll."

Jaune wasted no time and pulled his scroll out of his pocket and handed it to Brigitte, who expanded it and turned the inside of his shield towards her, making Jaune closer to her than expected. Jaune held his breath at the sudden closeness as Brigitte pointed to the space above his forearm.

"See that?" Brigitte asked. Jaune complied and rose an eyebrow at the symbol in between his arm and the top edge of his shield. It was a symbol of a dark metallic gear with a solid center. The gear was broken into thirds, but retained a perfect circular shape.

Before Jaune could comment on what it was, Brigitte placed his scroll atop the symbol and Jaune widened his eyes at how the scroll remained attached to the shield.

"This feature was already a part of it before I got my hands on it, but I wanted to spruce it up. Give you something to remember me by." Brigitte said as she pointed to her tattoo on her left shoulder.

"Brigitte, I can't thank you enough." Jaune said as he grabbed his scroll and collapsed his shield. "This is more than amazing."

"It's nothing, Jaune." Brigitte said as she waved her hand dismissively. "The sword wasn't as complex as some meca-shifting weapons I've seen before. I was happy to help."

"Still, there has to be something I can do. It took you a few days right?"

"Yeah…" Brigitte said as she rubbed the back of her head, her ponytail swayed a bit at the short ruffling. "A couple of nights too."

"I gotta pay you somehow." Jaune said as he reached for his wallet.

"Jaune," Brigitte said, earning his attention. "This was the payment for helping you out in the Emerald Forest."

"Still…" Jaune said as he looked at his weapon. "This had to be a lot of work. I have to do something. Anything to really earn it."

Brigitte paused as she looked Jaune up and down. "Anything?"

Jaune nodded.

"Alright then," Brigitte said as she put her hands on her hips. "I want loyalty."

"Loyalty?" Jaune asked with a sudden raise of an eyebrow.

"Loyalty." Brigitte said with a nod. "Any and all purchases, maintenances, and upgrades of weapons and armor are going to be through the me and my family; no one else. I need the experience and what better way than having a Huntsman in training be a regular? I hope your weapon is a good example of what I can do."

Jaune nodded feverishly. "Of course."

"That one is free, but anything else is going to cost you. Are you okay with that?"

"More than okay."

"So," Brigitte said as she held out her hand, "Do we have a deal?"

Jaune was about to accept her offer, but hesitated as he noticed that her hands were a soft shade of red and her fingers were covered in small bandages.

_'Did she go through all of that just for this?'_ Jaune thought to himself as he glanced at his weapon.

"Jaune?" Brigitte asked.

"Oh! Uh… yeah!" Jaune said before shaking her hand with a firm grip. "We have a deal."

"Good." Brigitte said with excitement in her voice. "In the meantime, I hope you put it to good use." she gestured to Jaune's sword on his hip. "Maybe show your friends? We could definitely use more customers."

Jaune chuckled a bit as he folded his arms. "Of course, Brigitte."

"It's the least you could do, Jaune." The sudden voice that intruded on Jaune and Brigitte's conversation made both parties jump. Jaune turned around quickly and relaxed the moment he saw his grandfather. Jack leaned against one of the posts that kept the roof up with his arms folded and a satisfied smirk on his face.

"I intend to, Grandpa," Jaune said as he dusted off his jeans. "At least when everyone comes back."

"So, how do you like it?" Jack asked as he nodded to Crocea Mors.

"It's amazing," Jaune said. "Couldn't be happier with it."

"Not a surprise. It's Lindholm work." Jack said before he pressed off the post and looked toward Brigitte. "Torbjörn was responsible for creating and upgrading most of our weapons back in Atlas. Said he didn't trust anyone else with the gear we took on missions."

"Sounds like Papa." Brigitte giggled at the notion and put her hands on her hips. "When was the last time you talked to him, if you don't mind me asking?"

"A long time." Jack said before he rubbed his chin. "I've been too busy with some freelance work to really count."

"You're still an active Huntsman?" Jaune asked and his mouth gaped when Jack nodded his head.

"I don't go on as many missions as I use to," Jack said as he stretched a bit. "But I go on enough to keep in shape."

"Dang." Brigitte said with a low whistle. "You should take Papa with you next time. He needs the exercise."

Jack laughed a bit at Brigitte's jab at her father and shook his head. "He's too busy with keeping all this afloat. Reinhardt joined me on some occasions a long while back, but that's pretty much it." Jack snapped his fingers and pointed to Brigitte, "Speaking of Torbjörn, he wanted me to come get you. Said he wanted to go over some blueprints and wanted your input."

"Oh!" Brigitte said with exuberant realization as she took off her gloves and set them on her workbench. "I didn't know he wanted to do that today," she turned to Jaune with a cheerful smile. "Want to come with?"

"I actually need to talk to him for a bit." Jack said politely. "Mind if we get the keys to the practice room?"

"Yeah!" Brigitte said as she walked over to the exit of her father's forged and plucked a key off the hook. "I should have asked if you wanted to test out the new sword, Jaune. Sorry."

"It's okay." Jaune said as he couldn't help but feel uneasy yet excited to catch up more with Jack.

"Just head out the front exit and make your way around to the back. The entrance is going to be on your left." Brigitte said as she tossed Jack the keys. "I'll let both of you know when the pie is ready."

"Thanks, Brigitte." Jack said as he caught it with his right hand. "Jaune?" Jack called and nodded his head for him to follow. "Don't forget the sword."

"Right." Jaune said as he followed. He turned back to Brigitte one last time and saw that she gave him a thumbs up and a reassuring smile. Jaune nodded back at Brigitte before he and Jack out the door.

"So, I never got to ask," Jaune said as he jogged up to his grandfather and met his pace, "How have you been? I know you said that you've still been going on missions, but what else is new?"

"Not much to be honest." Jack said as he looked to his left. "After everything happened, I kind of threw myself into my work." Jack said before he fell silent for a few moments. "You mentioned Saphron earlier. How is she?"

"Great!" Jaune said with excitement. "She lives in Argus with her wife, Terra."

"She's married?!" Jack asked. His eyes widened with bewilderment as he looked to his grandson who only nodded.

"They have a kid too, Adrian Cotta-Arc."

"How old?"

"One I think." Jaune said before looking up in deep thought.

"Wow…" Jack said softly as he looked forward and let out a shaky breath. "That's… That's certainly something."

"I have pictures if you want to see."

"Most definitely," Jack said as he stopped at the door and unlocked it. "But first, you and I are going to talk about something else." He opened the door and allowed Jaune to enter first.

"What's that?" Jaune asked as he looked around the room. It was basic enough with four white walls with a comfortable training mat that encompassed the majority of the floor. Weapon racks lined the wall on the far end and there were two windows that faced each other on either side of the wall.

The all too familiar sound of a sword being unsheathed echoed around the entire room and Jaune turned to face his grandfather, who brandished a basic sword and swung at Jaune's neck.

"WOAH!" Jaune said as he back peddled and activated his shield. Jack was on him in an instant as he thrusted forward with both hands. Jack's blade bounced off of Jaune's shield, but Jack's strength sent the blonde knight flying back against the back wall. Jaune gasped as he felt the impact knock the wind out of him.

"Wha-AGH!" Jaune exclaimed as he dove to the side and barely dodged another downward strike from Jack. Jaune recovered and stood up with his shield at the ready and took the quick lull to brandish his sword. Jaune gulped at the sight of his silent grandfather pulling his sword from the wall with a blank expression on his face.

"Grandpa!" Jaune exclaimed as he planted his feet and tightened his grip on Crocea Mors. "What are you doing?!"

There was no response as Jack swung at a downward angle. Jaune's eyes widened as he parried the blade and kicked Jack right in his sternum, making the older man stumble back. Jaune took a moment to calm his breathing as he kept his shield up.

"Hm." Jack muttered as he tilted his head to the side. Jaune had no time to react as Jack was on him in an instant. Rapid and borderline rabid strikes bounced off of Jaune's shield and some were abled to break through the blonde knight's defenses. Jaune winced every time Jack landed a successful strike and in doing so, made him lose his focus.

Jack took notice of this immediately and went in for another strike, but stopped as he saw Jaune flinch. Once he saw the confusion rise within his grandson, Jack quickly ducked down and swept Jaune off his feet with a low kick. The older huntsmen didn't stop there as he quickly turned on his heel and landed a successful back kick into Jaune's chest; returning the favor moments before.

"AGH!" Jaune yelled as he was once more slammed into the weapon racks. The crashing of wood and metal rang within his ears as he shook his head. He tried to get up, but closed his eyes and resisted the urge to groan at how heavy his left arm was and especially at how much it ached. With a few breaths, Jaune unstrapped his shield and got up off the ground. He wielded his sword with both hands and gritted his teeth.

Jaune used whatever strength he had left and charged at Jack with a ferocity he hadn't felt since the Breach. His breaths were rabid as he swung at his grandfather with quick and ferocious strikes. Jaune's frustration only grew as each swing was either blocked or dodged with minimal effort. All while Jack's blank expression fueled his frantic endeavor.

Jaune's breath hitched however as an inkling of an idea formed within his mind. Without taking another moment to flesh out his plan, Jaune pulled away from his final strike at the last moment. He gritted his teeth and closed the distance between the two of them, making sufficient sword swings impossible. Jaune wasted no time as he slammed the pommel of his blade right into the bridge of Jack's nose.

There was no cry of pain that came from Jack, only the sharp inhale of breath as he swung a left hook right at Jaune's head. Jaune saw his opening and ducked under the swing before bursting forward and making his way behind Jack. Jaune decided to return the favor and landed a strong and successful front kick at the center of Jack's spine.

Unlike Jaune however, Jack only stumbled forward and fell to one knee, all while keeping calm and consistent breathing. Jaune took the still moments to catch his breath and ready his stance. The blonde knight would be lying to himself if he said he didn't feel awkward without his shield though.

"Heh." Jaune heard Jack let out as his shoulders buckled once. The blonde knight was unable to question anything more as Jack shot up and turned on his heel with Jaune's shield strapped to his left arm.

The blonde knight felt the fear within him spike to unprecedented levels as Jack charged at him with his new shield up. In a last ditched effort, Jaune swung forward with little grace, only to widen his eyes as his grandfather collapsed his shield and let Jaune's swing hit nothing; making the blonde knight stumble forward. Jack stepped to the side and ceased his opening as he expanded the shield once more and smacked Jaune directly in the face with it.

Jaune couldn't let out a cry as he stumbled for a second and fell onto his back with a grunt. There was no time to recover as Jack was on top of him and slammed the pointed end at the bottom of the shield directly onto Jaune's sternum. A gasp escaped Jaune as he felt his aura shatter the moment of impact. Everything felt heavy in weak. Even his breathing felt weak as tried to push back the pain that radiated from his chest.

"Signal." Jack said in between a few pants and picked himself up by pushing off his upright knee. "If I were to give you a grade," Jack exhaled deeply as he put his hands on his hips and collapsed the shield before putting his hands on his hips. "I'd say you're at the level you should be at when you're training at Signal."

"Ah!" Jaune winced as he sat up and placed a hand over his chest.

"Which begs the question, Jaune," Jack said with an edge that Jaune hadn't heard in years. "How were you able to get into Beacon?"

Jaune looked up at his grandfather and didn't feel any anger, nor disappointment within his intent stare. But there was confusion and from his voice, he was more concerned than anything.

"It was tough," Jaune said as he looked down at his quivering body. "But I was able to get through initiation with the help of my team."

"That's not what I meant." Jack said before raising an eyebrow. "Also, you may want to work on your tell a bit. I've lost count how many times you scratched your head in the last hour." Jaune pulled his free hand back from his head and looked down at the relentless gaze his grandfather gave him.

"Jaune," Jack said as he crouched down to meet Jaune's eye level. "What's going on? That fight we just had told me enough when it came to your combat experience. You've had some training, but it wouldn't be enough to get through the application process."

Jaune remained silent.

"Jaune, are you even a student at Beaco-!"

"I lied." Jaune said without looking up.

"Lied about being a student?"

"Lied about how I got in." Jaune said with a whisper. "I took some of your old credentials we had in some filing cabinets up in the attic and put them on some false transcripts." Jaune began to shake even more than the time he told Pyrrha the truth. "It wasn't enough to be suspicious about, but enough to get accepted."

Jaune looked up to see that Jack wasn't shocked or even appalled at what he had to say, but Jaune couldn't help but squirm at his grandfather's narrowed gaze.

"Did you have any combat experience?"

Jaune said nothing.

"Did you even have your aura unlocked?"

Still nothing.

Jack let out a breath. "Unbelievable." Jack said as he stood up and put his right hand over his forehead. "Does your mom know about this?"

Jaune shook his head.

"Jaune, do you realize how easily you could have been killed?" Jack asked. There was no strain to his voice, nor any raise in volume, but Jaune knew he wasn't happy. "No combat experience is one thing, but no aura? Jaune, that's basically suicide. Why would you even thi-!"

Jack looked down at Jaune and saw the answer within his eyes. Jaune may have been older, but it was the same look he gave Jack nine years ago. It was a pained look that Jack had only seen once before and it was one of the last memories he shared with his grandson.

"Oh…" Jack said as any and all frustration died within his voice. "That."

"Yeah…" Jaune said as he stood up while still having his hand over his chest.

"Does your team know about your transcripts?"

"Pyrrha does." Jaune said softly. "She's been helping me… until recently."

"Change of heart?"

Jaune nodded his head. "I made a mistake during the Breach."

"You were there?"

Jaune nodded once more.

"What kind of mistake?" Jack asked as he took a step forward with curiosity.

"The kind that gets your teammate into a coma."

Jack widened his eyes at Jaune's statement as his mind pieced together any unanswered questions he had when conversing with Jaune earlier.

"If it was me who took the hit, that would be one thing," Jaune said as he fought back the tears and took a heavy breath to compose himself. "But it was Ren," Jack took notice at how Jaune's hands tightened into fists.

"What does Ozpin have to say about this?" Jack asked.

"He wanted me to use the break to reflect on everything." Jaune remained consistent in his lack of eye contact. "He's probably going to test me when school starts up again."

"I wouldn't put it past him." Jack said as he rubbed his chin. "What have you done since then?"

Jaune let out a strained chuckle, "Other than nearly get killed by a King Taijitu in the Emerald forest and having my weapon break on me, not much."

"Wait, what?" Jack asked.

"How do you think I met Brigitte?" Jaune asked. "If it weren't for her, I would have been killed. She even wanted to fix my weapon for free." Jaune chuckled a bit at how ridiculous that sounded.

"I take it she doesn't know about all this?"

Jaune's eyes finally met Jack's and widened them at the notion. "No. Please don't tell them."

Jack held up his hand and gestured for Jaune to calm down. "I haven't said anything to them." Jack narrowed his eyes at his grandson who let out a breath of relief. "You're going to have to tell her eventually, Jaune. It will be worse if she finds out on her own."

Shame quickly overwhelmed Jaune's relief as the blonde knight fell silent.

"So, what do you plan to do?" Jack asked with folded arms. "You have a few months before everyone comes back, and there's no telling when your teammate is going to wake up." Jack remained fixated on his grandson. "Do his parents know about this?"

"Ren only has Nora," Jaune said. "She went with Pyrrha to Argus so she wouldn't cause major destruction to the school."

"That bad?" Jack asked.

"Imagine your big friend back there on a sugar rush and a blood rage at the same time."

"Ah." Jack said, getting the point immediately.

"Because I'm the leader, I have to keep watch over him."

"Have you?"

"Every day," Jaune said. "Except when I went out to the Emerald forest." Jaune stretched a bit and winced at how much his body ached. "As for what's next, I guess keep up with my studies and train at Beacon."

"You think that's going to be enough?" Jack asked.

"Pyrrha was the one who made me realize I had to learn twice as fast and work three times as hard."

"But Pyrrha isn't here right now."

Jaune paused for a moment. "True," he said. "I'll just have to try on my own."

"I don't think you realize how difficult that's going to be, Jaune." Jack said in a stern tone.

"I can't let that stop me, Grandpa." Jaune retorted and Jack fell silent. Jaune couldn't help but feel the anxiety within him simmer as his grandfather gazed right into his eyes.

"You really want this, don't you?" Jack asked.

"More than anything."

Jack remained still before he unfolded his arms and put his hands on his hips. "Okay." Jack said. "We got a lot of work to do."

"Wait, what?" Jaune asked.

"You honestly think I'm going to let my only grandson keep going on this borderline suicidal path without a teacher?" Jack said as he put a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Not a chance." any and all tension relaxed the moment Jack smiled at Jaune. "I don't know what's going to happen when Beacon starts up again, but for the rest of the break, I'm going to train you like I should have done years ago."

Jaune went rigid at the news. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. This was the second time someone offered their help to him, but unlike Pyrrha, there was resolve as well as care within Jack's voice. It shook Jaune to his core as he couldn't believe this was happening.

"We're going to have to keep this a secret from your mother, of course." Jack said before chuckling, "But I think you can do this."

"I…" Jaune said as his hands were trembling. "Thank you." Jaune gave Jack no time to respond as he gave him a tight hug.

Jack smiled at the sudden gesture and retuned it in full. "Don't thank me yet," Jack said with a chuckle. "With what I'm going to put you through, you're going to wish you were dead." Jack couldn't help but laugh at how fast Jaune tensed up at his declaration.

"Jaune?" Jaune and Jack broke apart as they heard Brigitte's voice and the door to the training room open. "Pie's cooking right now, but I-!"

Both Jaune and Jack turned to see Brigitte walk in and Jaune paled at how her happy demeanor morphed into a look of horror.

"What happened in here?!" Brigitte yelled at the destroyed weapon racks as well as the training weapons that were littered across the floor.

"Sorry," Jack said. "Got carried away." he slapped Jaune's shoulder, which made his grandson yelp in pain. "Jaune here is going to fix all of this up before he gets any pie. Aren't ya, Jaune?"

The blonde knight paled at the smile his grandfather gave him and paled even further when he saw the stern look Brigitte had. "Y-Yeah." Jaune said. "No problem."

He honestly had no clue how this was all going to turn out.

**And there we go. The beginning is done and man oh man am I excited to get into the thick of it. With everything going on in the world, I'm going to try and keep chapter updates more consistent and I hope you all enjoy. Comment, review, and as always, BE COMPASSIONATE AND BE FIERCE!**

**SPARKYDAPPERDAB19 SIGNING OFF! **


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